Bloody Roar II: A Killer's Seduction
by Tiger5913
Summary: Updated: A Temporary Diversion: The only time Kenji questions his master's judgment is when he's partnered with... ! Plot twist to the Bloody Roar II storyline: three years after the ZLF started, Shenlong, Hajime Busuzima, and the ZLF still reign... !
1. The New Assignment

8/26/02

Disclaimer: the characters in this fic such as Uriko, Kenji, etc. belong to Hudson Soft; I don't own them, though I wish I did! -waggles eyebrows mysteriously- Gee, what I would do with them… -eyes glaze over- But the characters: Erika Daweson and Sahichi Touyo belong to me, so please ask permission before using them in another fic.

Dedication: God, my parents, my 'brothers', Hudson for creating Bloody Roar I-III and giving me a really good reason to write this story, and my readers, especially Sheila, VGuyver, Andrew Glasco, IndigoSiren, gery, RAYClovis, Beastman, Dirk, Xardion, and all of you wonderful readers!!

Synopsis - A plot twist to the Bloody Roar II storyline: two years after the Zoanthrope Liberation Front started up and the leader had slain Yugo Ohgami, Hajime Busuzima and his henchmen reign in the present day. A small band of zoanthropes resist the terrorist attacks, including Alan Gado, his wife Jenny, their daughter Shina (Jane), her beau Long Shin, and Yugo's former lover, Alice Nonomura. But their task will not prove easy, as all the members of the ZLF, along with two skilled assassins, stand in their way, and one is about to get close to a certain family member of the renegade bunch.

**Bloody Roar II: A Killer's Seduction**

**By Tiger5913**

**Prologue**

"Errrauuugh…! …Uhhh…"

The shrill scream pierced the air, shattering the previous tranquility that had settled over the dark night, and yet no attention became alert at the sudden outburst, as there were few bystanders around to witness such atrocity. A tortured groan noised painfully, but the only other person nearby merely threw the victim a cool glance, and calmly arose to softly padded feet covered with tabi shoes, erecting to a tall stance that emitted confident superiority. Blank, bitterly nonchalant emotion flickered upon an expressionless face upon viewing the suffering, and in fact, merely almost smirked when the man writhing on the floor reached a partially mangled hand up, seeking unanswered help. All he received was a sneer in verbal response and a swift kick to his side, which caused him to elicit a wheezed gasp as his eyes bulged in emphasis of discomfort and the additional pain that he was enduring at the moment.

The figure standing next to him merely expressed a cold smirk and offered no assistance or displayed any remorse at the agony that the poor individual was currently suffering, acted as if this was a normal, everyday occurrence. He admittedly looked like quite a mess with one of his arms twisted at a sickening angle, bones obviously broken and battered from force, and thick wetness coating strands of his hair; dark stains streaked down his face, making him appear gruesome. Clothes were shredded to ribbon strips, baring certain portions of his body, with those remaining intact just barely covering his private regions, shielding them from the public eye, even though none were present in the currently-mentioned situation. His eyes showed terror and repulsion, further indicating the victim's agony, which of course fed the ever-growing fire of his murderer's confident and glee, and upon startled realization, he struggled to suppress the emotions, but it was difficult due to his condition.

"H-he…help… m-me…" he pleaded, succumbing to his body's own agonized cry for help, his weakly wheezing chest heaving with effort as he coughed sharply, and he blinked dazedly when darkness threatened to consume his vision. His arm tried to twist out of its former horrendous position and reach up, his hand clawing around to clutch at the vicious open wound on his neck, wet and sticky fingers quivering as they were soaked with his own thick, crimson blood.

"You are worthless." His slayer remarked blatantly, light-shaded eyes glowing with a fierce fire of unfulfilled bloodlust as harsh laughter was released upon noticing that dark-colored fur had started to sprout from the man's bare arms and his bodily features twisted into distortion. "If you were smart and truly desired to extend your pathetic withering life, then you would know that will not help your condition, so save your strength, or else you shall perish sooner."

"Mon…monster…"

"Hah, label me as you wish, foolish coward. Do you not see the rightfulness of our cause? A choice was given to you; join our group, or walk away, and how truly unfortunate for you that your choice happened to be the latter. You are either on our side, or you are the enemy. Become the aforementioned adversary, and…" A casual shrug and a quick, arrogant jerk of the chin ensued at the words. "Well, all opponents must be eliminated, each and every single last one, no matter the effort, or how much time the entire task will exhaust."

The dying being offered no verbal reply to that statement, knowing nothing could be said to change the harsh reality, and instead, shifted so he could face his entity, and just displayed a look of utter confusion mingling with underlying hatred. The two stared at each in silence for endless moments, and finally, a weak inkling of fear and acceptance dimmed his eyes, turning them utterly bleak and soulless as one last breath heaved out of his lungs before the man collapsed into stillness. The figure that still possessed livelihood remained in a standing position even post the victim's death, snorting apathetically and then briskly turned around as a chilled set of lips curved into a malicious, eagerly anticipating smile. This assignment had been far too simple and literally short-lived; hopefully, the next one would provide more amusement, and the prey in question was stronger in will rather than mere physicality, to not fall as easily as this pathetic and feeble individual.

A flat hand whipped through the air with blurring speed, signaling readiness to leave this gruesome scene that was sadistically familiar, and a quick blink of light consumed the assassin, fading after a moment with only shredded green remains left behind as evidence.

**Chapter 1**

**The New Assignment**

_Slam!_

The crisp sound of the door shutting jolted the youth to awareness, shaking a serene mint out of its formerly peaceful slumber and corresponding blurred brown eyes blinked several times before staring in the direction of the noise to discover its source. A slumped figure slowly pulled off ivory white boots before trudging drooping feet along the beige, fuzzed carpet covering the surface of the floor, periodically heaving sighs of effort that were only evident prior to entering the new vicinity. Crimson irises fought to focus on the scenery presented, fatigue fairly obvious in the dark shades as slender fingers slowly ascended along a smooth cheek to listlessly brush aside dangling strands of dark blue hair, just craving an action to perform. The person formerly sleeping on the couch immediately sprung up to a standing position upon the entrance and offered a cheerful smile while enthusiastically approaching the newcomer, vibrating with an overabundance of life that was oddly usual in this particular personality.

"Sister, hiya! Gee, how did it go-"

"Not well…" came the tired, harassed-sounding tone of voice, followed by a deeply disappointed sigh as the speaker threw up both arms into the air to signify a fair amount of aggravation despite the figure's typical warm and endlessly patient exterior. "Things were all right after we first penetrated their hideout and managed to sneak in, but when we were discovered, a fight ensued, and unfortunately, Mr. Gado was quickly knocked unconscious when he got flung into a steel wall by one of our opponents, and the rest of us had to protect him while fighting off the others at the same time. Huh… It's a really bad disadvantage to have such a weakness exposed in the heat of battle, you know?"

"Hey Alice, come on, have a seat!" The young protagonist insisted, ushering the emotionally-exhausted woman over to the comfortable one-person seat and then quickly darted into one of the other rooms to retrieve something that would offer better physical and perhaps even spiritual comfort. "I'll make you some Jasmine tea that Master Long left us the last time he and Shina came by here…"

"Oh, thanks a bunch, I really need it…" The soft-hearted Alice Nonomura smiled at the concern being shown toward her person and then curled her legs up onto the tan cushion before resting her elbows onto the armrest for the purpose of laying her head atop the junction. The sympathetic nurse of twenty-four years old closed her droopy eyes and willed the tension in her muscles to leave while inhaling slow breaths to help calm herself down, wanting to leave all previous un-pleasantries behind to concentrate on the present situation at hand. Hope had to live within their small resistance group no matter what happened, as the fate of their kind and the innocent humans lingered on the edge, threatening to crash to a horrible death if not hastily saved. She could feel her mind slowly relaxing as it eased into a hazy rest, brought on by her consumed energy from enduring her previously mentioned tasks, and she willingly succumbed to the soothing darkness inhibiting her consciousness.

The air of the environment had toned down to match the serenity of the slumbering female, yet the tension was still thick, clinging to the drops of perspiration dotting her brows as she could not afford to forget the pessimistic thoughts trying to force their way into her head. Unfortunately for the young woman, no one could feel or share her pain; she had to endure everything by herself without a significant other to ease the hurt, and even in sleep, a frown marred her expression while her teeth were chewing on her lower lip. A sudden flash of a reassuring smile flickering briefly in her mind accompanied with whispered sweet words of yesterday soothed her temporarily and she retained a tranquil look, one that was pleasant and would not be alarming to other watchers. A few minutes later, when she was already well into sleep, her younger sister walked back into the living room carrying a steaming cup of hot tea in both hands and presented it to the weary figure without realizing how silent the room had become while she was gone.

"Here, sister, drink up now…" the teenager urged, nudging her sibling with her elbow, but when she received no reply or reaction, she peered to look down at a peaceful face, acknowledging that Alice had indeed fallen asleep and smiled faintly in understanding. Shrugging casually, she returned the china to the kitchen and washed out the contents, thinking it a shameful waste, but nonetheless, she completed the task and vowed to keep the discard a secret from her friends, who were the ones that had brought the tea. She left the current room and strolled through the house to retrieve a thin blanket from the hallway closet and went back to the living room, draping the wide material over the older female's sleeping body, tucking the edges into the sides of the chair. Casting one last look at the slumbering woman, the youth released a small sigh as she ventured down the dark hall, heading for the staircase to head up to her own quarters and escape from the reality of a harsher life that should never have been bestowed upon such a young girl.

_I feel bad for leaving Sis at a time like this… _the dark-haired teenager thought as she ascended to the second level of her house. _But even if I tried to stay and help out, Alice_ _wouldn't let me 'cause she doesn't like me getting involved in all the fighting. Gee, I wonder if that's why she's so darn insistent that I go on the camping trip… Well, not that I mind going, but… I just hope she'll be okay while I'm gone._

-----

"Good job, boy, a very well-done job! Uwehehehe…" a scratchy voice cackled, pleased with the enthusiasm to start a new task that was being displayed by the thoroughly dedicated killer. "You eager to go on your next assignment already, hmmm?"

"Yes, master."

"Haha, and a moment not too soon! Those damn renegade losers infiltrated one of our private hideout bases this evening… We had better move to a different location tonight and temporarily abandon our main headquarters to avoid being found from those brats, so I'm not sure if you should get a new assignment right now." Those words were spoken in a dubious, yet provoking tone.

"I beg of you, master. This boredom will grow and consume me should I stay idle for too long; I swear that after completing my assignment, I will retreat to the remote cabin in the woods and stay there until it is safe to return to this present location, only when you instruct me so."

"Hmmm… well then, if ya are that eager…" Loud, amused laughter of approval accompanied the rather provocative lingering statement. "All right! But this is no ordinary task - let me tell you a story, boy. Several years ago, I had a special specimen in my vicinity, one that _willingly_ joined me, of course… I enhanced the specimen's zoanthrope abilities and received a powerful fighter in return for my genius, but then catastrophe of all catastrophes, my glorious prized possession was snatched away from me during a raid from one of those damned zoanthrope rebel groups!" The speaker clenched a tight fist in anger.

"I am truly sorry for your past misfortune, master. Allow me to agree with you that those individuals are troublesome indeed and deserve to be punished with the harshest of reprisals. For the time being, would you like me to correct this matter in some way?"

"Yes, yes… you catch on very quickly, boy, that's good… Now, two years ago, our ZLF leader, Shenlong, slain one of the responsible for stealing my precious subject from me – you should recall that incident as we all were triumphant, of course - but unfortunately, my precious specimen still roams around freely. Your assignment is to find this specimen for me and securely confine your victim in the cottage, using any means necessary to get cooperation, and come back to this headquarters when it's safe for us all to return so that I can continue my experimentation. This is a very special zoanthrope, so don't inflict any harm on a single hair, got it?"

An obeying nod ensued. "It will be done, master. Upon my leave, I shall retrieve this specimen of yours quickly and bring him to you the second that you request it."

"Him?! Uwahahahaha! Boy, you make me laugh! _Him, _hehehehehehe, oh dear!"

"…What ails you, master?"

"It's a girl, young one, a she, not a he, hahahahaha…!"

"…A female? Oh. I… see."

"Ya hesitate now, hmmm? What's the matter, boy? Don't think you can tame a little girl, eh? Hehehehe…!"

A firm shake of denial was hastily shown as denial to that question from the young male. "No, master, I assure you the gender has no significance to me. I will still retrieve your specimen and bring her back to you as ordered."

"Good, good…" Large gawky hands clapped together in hearty approval, and then ghosted over to retrieve a folder. "You've improved very much since the start of this organization, boy… You're doing a fine job; just don't ever lose your head now, ya hear?"

"Of course not, master." The obedient bystander bowed respectfully from the waist, and then raised eagerly glistering eyes up to meet the said master; a crooked smile curved icy lips to demonstrate his steadfast loyalty, as no intentions of betrayal lingered anywhere. Receiving the thin manila file from the other bystander, one flap was quickly pushed open to reveal his next target: it happened to be a stunning teenage girl with a wide grin in her brightly-lit brown eyes that matched the overall expression on her face. Her lusciously-curved hips were pushed to the side and her upper body to the opposite; it was a rather provocative pose to those innocent of a discreet emotion and she flowered even more with that effect due to the pursed invitation of her lips. The observer blinked once at the slender figure in the picture, absorbing everything into view to be securely locked in his memory, though for more reasons than just the obvious, and then he hastily swung roaming eyes away to avoid staring too long and drawing suspicion. "If I may be dismissed now, master, I shall begin my assignment."

"Yeah, yeah, go on with ya now!" A wave of dismissal flashed through the air. "Just don't forget to keep an eye out for those bloody rebel zoanthropes, boy… They strike outta nowhere and they might get to ya if you're not careful enough."

"I will not fail." The assassin hissed the words insistently, leaving no room for arguments or hesitation and spun around to leave the room; but not a single step ensued as he suddenly turned back halfway, inquiring curiously, "…Master, might I ask of my assignment's name? Just in case I need to confirm which target to retrieve for you." He wanted to have a name to place on the vision of loveliness captured in the small photograph, as it would be the only way to confirm the subject when he would seek her out, though his own mind suspected that he wanted an alias for personal reasons as well.

His master winked slyly and elicited a low chuckle. "Interested? Uwehehe… All right, have it your way, boy. And, as an added bonus aside from your reward for your efficiency, you can break her in before giving her back to me if you want to, hahaha… Just be sure to bring her in one piece when you're done with… Uriko Nonomura."

_"…Break her in?" Hrmp, forget it, that is irrelevant. All I must remember is… Uriko Nonomura._ "Understood," his servant complied, and then proceeded to disappear out the door, his mind actively working on a strategy for the forced encounter between predator and prey.

_This will be most intriguing to watch, ehehehehe… _The sole figure left behind in the vicinity cackled aloud, truly amused in wondering how the events would unfold over the next few weeks and rubbed a bristly chin in amusement, tapping thick fingertips over the tiny stubs. "Be sure to have fun and enjoy her, boy…"

-----

_Several changes of clothes, soap, shampoo, hairbrush… I feel like I'm missing something… _"Sis, I can't find my travel-size toothbrush!" A slightly distressed voice called out, as noises of shuffled items moving around sounded into the air, soon followed by a muffled question, "Do you know where it is??"

"Try one of the outer pockets of your suitcase!"

The female youth bent down to the level of her large navy bag and unzipped the aforementioned, then stuck her hand inside and groping until her fingers enclosed a slim tube, indeed locating the hygiene item that she had been searching for so long. She grinned slightly at her own foolishness and dropped it back into the slot before proceeding to finish packing her suitcase, stuffing in the final ingredients that were necessary for the camping trip she would soon embark on, making sure nothing important was left behind. A quick glance at the clock told her that she only had fifteen minutes to arrive at her school before the bus left and she let out a shriek, afraid that she did not have enough time to make it and would have to make her sister dole out a ride. The brunette grabbed the twin straps of the item holding her belongings within and checked herself in the mirror for any strange appearances that happened to escape her awareness, and when satisfied, she darted away from her room, breezing through the hallway to descend the stairs.

"See you in a couple of months, Alice!" came the farewell cry as twin feet speedily thundered down a path despite the figure's lightweight body and the front door opened and slammed shut mere seconds later.

Seated in the kitchen wearing her nurse uniform, the older sister shook her head slightly as she continued enjoying her breakfast before she would leave the house for work, taking advantage of the leisure time to heal twinges of soreness in her muscles. Her eyes misted over a bit at the thought of being alone for a full fortnight and along with it, brought the ghostly memory of a warm smile that had always lifted her spirits in the past, emitting kind feelings comforting to even the most depressed of pessimists. But forced to live in the present day, she was fully aware that she would never see that expression again, or the person that put it on display and the wetness in her dark red irises flickered as she tried to blink the tears and harsh reminder away. Hunching her shoulders in a rare show of defeat, the young woman sighed heavily and stared off in the direction that her sibling had disappeared to, allowing a partial grin to grace her lips as she tried to think of the innocent happiness that the teenager would soon be engaged in.

"Have fun on your trip, little sister…" she whispered to the empty room.

-----

_Hello there…_

His assignment had been found, walking about the public area in plain sight on the way to a destination that he was uninformed of but could not have cared less to know; he smiled in satisfaction upon realizing that she was going to make everything so easy for him. She admittedly looked quite striking; this young female with her innocent yet equally provocative features, and it was her outfit that had first caught his eye, especially the thin straps of her tank top that revealed much of her smooth, doe-like skin. There was not a hint of artificial make up tainting her face, proving that she was not absorbed in vanity as many others were, but it did absolutely nothing to hamper her attractiveness and she briefly closed her eyes to inhale a breath of the fresh morning air. Pale blue jean shorts covered her lower body, ending at mid-thigh, the denim tightness leaving much to a mind's overactive and hormone-drive imagination and her white sneakers squeaked a bit as she increased her pace, easing into a slow jog.

The girl hummed softly as her bag bounced against her side while she was casually strolling down the sidewalk, a wide grin of obvious pleasure spreading out her lips despite the hurry that seemed to linger about her form, suggesting she needed to arrive somewhere soon. Sunlight streaked bright gleams upon her hair, making the long brown tresses shimmer, and further enhancing her appearance, making her watcher grimace reluctantly in an effort to glance elsewhere and avoid being trapped in her feeble power. She flipped her lengthy auburn braid back over her shoulder and spun around in a full circle to emphasize her elation, her long legs flashing in a quick whirl with the motion, almost blinding him because of the naked beauty that was being flaunted. The action made her observer growl in disdain at her joyous mood, as he resented creatures exhibiting such delight when there was nothing in the world to smile at, and a clenched fist shook with intolerance, but went away with a new, soothing thought.

_Break her in…_

His master's words hung in his mind, and although he felt a little confused by the statement that was made earlier and wondered if there was a second meaning underlying the tone, he thought it simply meant that he could break the girl's spirit. That would be an easy task to complete for the skilled and experienced assassin, as he had much experience in toying with his victim's head to the brink of death, but then he remembered a little bitterly that he could not have the pleasure of killing her. Then again, even if he could not practice their sadistic extents on this girl, then at least his sadistic and carefully planned tactics would be saved for the next unfortunate bystander that he would be assigned to decimate in the future. It was a shame though, since he had never been ordered to slay a female before, despite his past encounters with them, and now he would have to wait longer still, until goodness knew how many more days before he would finally be able to.

No mercy would be spared for this subject just because she was a girl, although it was a bit unnerving to think of inflicting harm on a lady as opposed to his past assignments, the majority of them being male and consistently braving through everything with masculinity. This would be one of the rare occasions that he battled a female and he recalled fighting very few of them, except for the special period a little over three years ago, near the beginning of the ZLF's birth when many more opponents had arisen as challengers. He growled at the conflicts battling inside him, gruffly shaking away the agitating effects so he could concentrate on his assignment, retrieving this particular teenager for his master, who supposedly possessed special powers within her. But as he watched her prance about the place with that infuriating smile on her face, he had to wonder what in the world was she so happy about - being a zoanthrope, he would assume that she was disturbed by the terrorizing incidents that were happening lately.

_Unless she is nothing more than clueless individual that cares only about herself, and is completely oblivious to her surroundings…_

The slender youth paused just then, right next to the flourishing flowerbed of a resident in the neighborhood and bent to her knees, reaching out a hand to delicately stroke the petals of a budding rose in its earlier stages of development. The dark blue bag that she had been carrying all the time slid off her arm, and plopped to the concrete ground, sitting idly by as her attention was willingly averted, her rush forgotten for the time being, shoved aside by other pleasantries. She was content with her current environment if her blissful sigh was any indication of such bloody aggravating elation, and that knowledge invoked a stormy sensation in him, making his eyes narrow to thin slits in great annoyance. He loathed seeing jubilant people always outwardly displaying their eternal optimistic attitude, oblivious to the real pains and reality of the world while everyone else in question doubtlessly suffered, and this girl was most certainly no special exception to the rule.

Unbidden came the image of dried tears streaking across her face, a pleading look in her frightened pupils as she realized there would be no more freedom for her after this day and had little other choice than to submit to his command. Distracted by that train of thought, he almost chuckled, a bit tickled with such delicious sensations of dominating this young girl, but he quickly covered his mouth to avoid letting out any indications of his presence, as he had to have the element of surprise. Glancing back at his prey, his jaw fell open a bit when he caught a glimpse of bare skin from the shifting of her top as she slowly rose up to a standing position. He clamped it shut while the auburn-haired teenager adjusted her bag straps, making sure they rested on her shoulder once more before brushing the residue off of her palms and started simpering down the sidewalk again, her hips swaying slightly.

As the assassin quickly shook away those provocative thoughts, he placed himself in position to strike, a malicious grin on his features; he was almost quivering from the eagerness to wipe that happy expression off of her face.

_Let us see if you are still smiling when I am through with you…_


	2. Struck In Daylight

**Chapter 2**

**Struck In Daylight**

          "Chirp, chirp…"

His fingers slowly trickled along the fuzzy, pudgy body of the little red-breasted robin and the bird noised trustingly, snapping its tiny beak at the five tips that were nearing its vicinity, never suspecting that any harm would be inflicted upon its small form.  The creature of flight squeaked shrilly when a palm delicately wrapped around its feathery body, not yet informed of malicious intent, but then the hold tightened suddenly so it began twitching in discomfort, squawking loudly at being squeezed.  Pressure closed in from all sides as the captor's grip grew smaller with rigid purpose, slicing off free space at the desire of ending a life, making it obviously uncomfortable and equally difficult for the robin to inhale the necessary oxygen into its small lungs.  As precious time ticked by, its resistance died from being so easily overpowered as one last shrill peep was uttered, then the bird's diminutive black eyes painfully widened a bit before shrinking back into bleak dots and it went limp all of a suddenly.

          The little animal's killer expressed no remorse or sympathy for the life that was just stolen and the only emotion he allowed to show was the motion of his lips curving into a wicked smile as he continued squeezing relentless until a soft crack noised in the air.  It informed him that he had broke the robin's weak, puny neck and he released a slight chuckle as his palm opened, carelessly allowing the bird to drop down to the ground with a barely audible plop, never to flap its wings and fly freely again.  Dry leaves crunched as the figure left the sinful scene behind and made his way out of the area, delving into a clearing as slit-thin eyes intently watched the new victim that he would soon be toying with, barely containing eagerness.  How unfortunate that he was forbidden from inflicting fatal harm upon her being, for a torturous scenario crossed his mind that he was more than willing to try out on her, far worse than the one that he just forced upon the innocent creature of the sky.

          _Mmm, my prey looks to be out of her cage…  I must bring her in and show the girl her place._

*****

          _Hmm, maybe I should take the shortcut to school… don't wanna be late and miss the bus…_

          Clutching her bag straps tightly in her palms, the lithe teenager leaped over a line of bushes that grew along the right of the sidewalk and landed upon dry dirt ground, almost skidding from her haste to reach the destination lingering in mind.  She ducked underneath a thick brown branch that curved around head level and eagerly slipped into the forestry area, wanting to accomplish her task as soon as possible; glancing off in the distance, she could catch a glimpse of the beige-colored building of her school.  Grinning at her settled decision, the perky girl began making her way through the woods, brief streaks of sunlight peeking through the cluster to shine on her form, never thinking for a minute that she was in any danger as she had used this path before.  Many trees inhabited her surroundings, topped with lush emerald leaves that hid small creatures and animals from being seen, as well as other furtive beings that happened to be lying around, hidden from the female youth's vision though she was not looking anyway.

          A creak noised from somewhere far off to her side, but she did not seem to notice and merely leaped over a small running creek, giggling softly when the heel of her shoe splashing in the water as it accidentally grazed the edge on her descent.  A stealthy shadow slipped through the thick, twisted branches above the girl's position, listless eyes glaring down at her, almost in anger from her blissfully oblivious state that served as protection, and kept on watching her.  Weakly hanging leaves shook in the swaying motion as he moved along, following his prey carefully, and eventually several stems broke loose, entangling with others of its kind on its way drifting down to the dirt floor, disturbing the former tranquility.  Still, the brunette walked along her path, humming softly under her breath, helplessly unaware of the presence of dark twin orbs burning holes into her back and the danger that was hovering nearby, ready to steal her away given the opportunity.

          _"Uriko Nonomura…"_

          Her sensitive ears prickled as they detected the whispered words and the youth paused, looking about the place, wondering in the back of her mind if she had just been hearing nonsense since no one met her curious, wandering gaze.  When nothing but silence greeted her curious senses, she shrugged and continued on, smiling softly as a little squirrel scampered across the ground in front of her and then darted up a trunk on the other side, hiding from an enemy that was not there.  She giggled to herself at the adoring sight, and when a rustling noise ensued shortly after, she peered overhead to watch a flock of robins fly out of the leaves of the tree nearby her position, all seeming to escape from the same entity as the other tan-furred creature.  Shaking her head in slight amusement at their spontaneous flight, the teenager gazed in the direction of her school and resumed her walking again, thinking it a bit strange that the animals were acting this way but presumed that it was from enjoying the pleasant weather.

          The silent observer drew thin lips back in an annoyed scowl at being ignored and lean fingers gripped a small throwing object, lightly running the tips over the sharp endpoints, wishing that they were currently embedded into the soft skin of a certain individual.  The jubilant female was truly starting to grind agitation into cool emotion and it fueled the fury and desire to grab her by the throat, watch the dreaded and icy realization sink into her eyes and dim her smile when she saw the reaper come to claim her soul.  The hand palming the deadly star trembled in the apprehension of being able to inflict intense pain on the girl, but the echoing of strict orders forbade the action, and although an inner battle ensued, loyalty won out in the end and no physical attack occurred.  She had to be preserved in excellent condition as the brilliant scientist asked of, to start with a clean slate before she would be prodded and poked at, serving the purpose of a guinea pig for the rest of her days, or at least until she was fully used up in the end.

          _"I am coming to get you, Uriko Nonomura…"_

          She instantly stopped upon absorbing that, brows creasing in a frown as she slowly looked around, chocolate brown irises scanning every inch of the environment, hoping to detect another person as slight fear began to prick at her former elated attitude.  Utter tranquility met the sixteen-year-old during and after the time she took to peer about the place and she released a light growl of annoyance at her own mind playing tricks on her, and raised her free hand to smack her forehead in light reprimanding.  Brushing her large bangs away from her eyes, she sighed shrilly and glanced at the surrounding lush forest, wanting to find something that would hopefully and effectively distract her throughout the rest of the journey to school.  Trying to nonchalantly shrug off the incident, she started singing softly to herself in an attempt to block out any further whispered proclamations that her ears might pick up in the near future, inwardly wishing that the previous words had just been figments of her active imagination.

          The air of nervousness that suddenly flitted about the girl was a pleasuring sight to behold, feeding power to one's sadistic nature; her pace had quickened and she began to glance around more often, presumably in hopes of discovering the source of the whispered malice.  The skin of her knuckles was paler, almost white as she held onto her bag strap tightly; trying to draw empty comfort from an inanimate object even though it could not offer her true protection or serve as a guard should she get in trouble.  Her sneaker merely cracked a nimble branch underneath its sole and she jumped slightly, immediately throwing her gaze to look down at where the noise came from, which caused a partial smirk to dance invisibly in the chilling atmosphere.  She elicited a small sigh of relief when she realized the source was small, nothing that could do her any harm and that action caused a chuckle of amusement to ghost by the trees, while the leaves over her head rustled in quiet laughter.

          _"Do not ignore me, Uriko Nonomura…  You just might hurt my feelings…"_

          She refused to acknowledge and take the new muttered threat seriously, lifting her chin as she kept walking down the path that would lead out of the forestry area and to her school, suspicious and anxious that there was indeed a dangerous entity lurking about.  A noisy rustle from behind caught her attention and she instinctively whirled around to confront the source, blinking in surprise when only the sight of dry brown leaves fluttering to the ground greeted her view, which of course did nothing to ease her paranoia.  The auburn-haired girl tilted her head slightly to one side in curiosity and crossed her arms as she baffled over the situation, tapping her elbow with her fingertips, truly wondering if she was going insane or there really was someone out to get her.  Moments of silence reigned before she sought to initiate movement again, this time vowing to step far slower and lighter to try and detect a presence around her, and the second that she started to turn away, a loud crunch alerted her waiting ears.

          A sly figure disappeared into the shrouded safety of the tree's large and winding branches just as the youth jerked her head up and yanked her chin in the direction of the noise, unfortunately mere seconds too late from spying the vanished foe.  Her lips pursed together in an unwilling show of discomfort, unease lacing her expression as she reluctantly pivoted around to keep strolling down her original path, the muscles in her body tense and rigid this time in frightened anticipation.  A sudden burst of bird squawks that noised nearby her position made the female student flinch and she pumped her legs, starting to run from the enigma clouding her mind, preventing her clear train of thought or grasping onto simple reason.  Sunlight shone before her, its essence teasing her by being so far away; she needed to cross over quite a bit of distance that seemed to stretch more than miles from her current location and only then would she be able to make her escape out of the woods.

          _"You are not going anywhere, Uriko Nonomura."_

A metallic object shot through the air at blinding speed after those words disappeared and thanks to her fast reflexes, the teenager was thankfully able to duck at the last second, barely missing the thrown item as it kept flying until it became embedded into a tree's yielding trunk.  She quickly arose from her crouched position and spun back to glare at a still setting, her grip on the bag straps tightening as she struggled to keep the thin sheet of fear hidden underneath her emotions, realizing somehow that she needed to keep her cool in a potentially dangerous situation.  Furtively dwelling somewhere in the hidden forest around her was a person that intended to harm her; the whispers had not been a figment of her imagination, as she had first assumed, so that meant the girl had to be more careful and tread softly.  The knowledge shook her slightly, as the concept of being in such a predicament had been a mere fading memory since her last battle years ago, but still, she was not about to let a random manipulator try to install fear into her or use that moment of weakness to strike.  "…Who's there?!  Come out!"

          _"Do you want to know where I am, little girl?" _ The taunting invitation flirted with the flowing breeze, danger-laced words enticing her to play a game that could possibly end up hurting her fatally, though she honestly had no doubt that the owner intended on harming her regardless of her actions. _ "Then seek my presence, unless you would rather stand there and cower in fear."_

           Another noise emitted from behind her; she pivoted to glare in that direction to try and hopefully identify the previous speaker this time, but once again, she found nothing to soothe her burning curiosity and growing fear as to who was currently provoking her.  The stubborn girl covered the latter emotion up with tense anger and her hands unconsciously clenched into fists while narrowed dark-shaded eyes danced around the clearing, searching for other inhabitants as she boldly declared, "I'm not afraid of you, whoever you are!  Grrrr, I'm warning you, come out and show yourself right now…!  I know how to fight…"

          _"…I know how to kill efficiently… and I would be more than happy to give you a demonstration."_  The threat was muttered with such malice that the teenager could not fight back a tremor that shook her body – it sounded frightening close and had too much intensity to be considered empty words, but she bravely albeit foolishly stood her ground.  All of a sudden, she felt a passing wind ghosting by the side of her face at an undetectable speed, hardness briefly brushing against her stiffened body and tickling her ear as she could only whip her head to detect the other bystander in the area.  Her eyes caught a blur breezing down the dirt pathway before her and the girl immediately gripped her bag tighter, and then pumped her legs to chase after this provocative stranger, faintly glad that her invisible nightmare was finally in her sight.  She spied the dark attire cloaking identity of the walking enigma and released a little sigh of relief when she saw that the person was around her height, though the agility being exhibited was almost faster than her own, and the competition made her a bit uneasy.__

          _At least it's not someone that towers over me like Gado…_ she griped silently, remembering the last time that a remark was made about how much of an advantage she had in battle with someone that towered over her as the lion zoanthrope did.  Due to her shorter stature, it had indeed been easier for her to dodge some of his higher-aimed attacks, but she had to muster up other skills than that to defeat him, since he obviously had not arisen to his veteran fighter position by being idle.  And after all, if a fighter that was as tall as her presented inflicting difficulties that were more severe than her older compatriot did, then height would not make a flit of a difference; in fact, that factor could just be advantageous to whichever side chose to use it.  Steadily training her eyes on the mysterious figure as they both ran together, one following the other in a seemingly-endless chase, she voiced softly, placing just a sliver of barely-detectable strength into her question, "Who are you…?"

          A sudden burst of lush green leaves exploded from what appeared to be nowhere in the middle of the air, flirting with the flowing wind to drift over near the female youth's face, making her flinch even though they were puny and could do no harm to her person.  She lurched back reflexively, yanking her fist up to position it in front of her chest as protection, angling her legs so that she could prepare to spring in attack if needed, though no attack came and she was left standing there looking like a paranoid person.  A sinister, barely audible chuckle dimmed the environment with its overwhelming pessimism and the dark gray clouds above in the sky began to gather together ominously, destroying the holiness of the sunlight that had streaked through the woods before.  As the girl fought back the urge to shiver, she turned to glance at the other bystander just mere feet away from her current location, intending to forcefully find out the identity if necessary, and noticed in surprise that she was now looking at a turning side.

          "You resist.  Hmm, I am admittedly rather pleased with this obvious false and empty confidence.  I was sure you would be whimpering and cowering in fear by now… but it seems as though perhaps I had misconceived you, little girl."  Even though she could not tell everything just by gazing at a side profile, the low, forceful tone sounded masculine to her and that assumption was confirmed when shady eyes flickered briefly at her, then bored into her brown orbs with underlying power.  Despite the fact that she had managed to correctly guess her pursuer's gender, the shadows that he hid in concealed his identity well and she could barely even make out his attire, although that was hardly an important issue in her mind at the current time.  Sensing her hesitation and observation of his person, he released a chilling bark of a laugh; "I must thank you, for you are providing me with the entertaining task of shattering your spirit; I absolutely adore breaking my victims.  It makes the game more interesting, do you not agree?"

          _Sheesh…!  Who does this guy think he is…?_  The brunette cast him a weary look, undaunted by his blatant proclamations and wondered for a second if he could be related to the terrorist group, as that would be a plausible reason why she was being hassled on an ordinary day.  She knew that many of the angry members desperately desired retaliating at the resistant zoanthropes, resenting them for not accepting their terms on ridding humans, close-minded to other options such as peace and coexistence.  But she had hardly ever gone out with Alice and the others on their missions since her elder sister feared for the younger's safety, and constantly forbade her to follow, so it was strange that the teenage sibling would even be targeted when her face was usually hidden.  The youth grudgingly obeyed her sole guardian, although she was unsatisfied that she had to be protected as if she were a helpless child, when in fact she could take care of herself perfectly well; she had learned how to fight when she was fourteen, after all.

          Perhaps now was a time she could prove that she did not require assistance to solve her problems and could handle dangerous situations such as the present one solo, though never did the foolish side of it occur to her reasonable side.  Raising her chin proudly, the girl took a step forward and released a shrill breath, feeling a little miffed when the unknown male before her chuckled in mockery of her bravado, detecting and absorbing her fear with experienced ease.  He jerked his head to the side, looking away from her, in which she took as an insult, but then he clenched a fist and shot it out into the daylight as an acceptance to her unspoken challenge, more than eager to engage in battle with his prey.  His arm was bare, lean nakedness out to be eye candy for any curious observer's eyes, deceptively-cut biceps strong from previous training, but his hand was covered with a glove and over that was laced with a silvery armor of some type.

_Hrmp, I can take him down!  _"All right, you creep," she declared boldly, throwing her backpack on the floor and taking a fighting stance, "I don't know who you are, but if you're with that pervert Busuzima and his stupid ZLF group, I'm gonna kick sorry your butt for my sister's and everyone else's sake!"

          A scowl tumbled out from his lips, the first sign of raw, earnest emotion that he allowed to be exposed as he promised with startling confidence in his tone, "You are no match for my level of skill.  You will lose, pathetic amateur."

          _"…Amateur…"_ The taunt triggered a fire of familiarity inside the girl but she merely scrunched her face into a mean expression, and then waved her opponent over in invitation with a few crooks of her fingers, never liking to initiate a battle with the first move.  A slight nod was all she caught, and he then executed quick movement, disappearing before her eyes, which caused her to blink in confusion and step back cautiously, wondering who possessed such an advanced and cunning ability.  A shrill trail of smoke remained in the air where he had vanished and more leaves miraculously materialized in his previous location, whispering to the ground to taunt her of his sudden absence, provoking her with the knowledge that she could be seen and not vice versa.  She immediately fell into a defensive crouch, head twirling around to gaze all over the place just in case a surprise attack was to strike out of nowhere, trusting her intuition that the adversary had not left, merely hid to wait for her guard to drop.

          _"Let us not waste precious time getting to know one another…"_

          Strong fingers suddenly encircled the back of her neck, bruising her tender skin with gruff treatment, and she tried to gasp in instinctive response, but that outburst was quickly choked off before it could even hope to be emitted.  Her eyes bulged and grunts of effort growled deep in her throat as the girl raised a leg and stretched it high up to kick behind her, sneaker sole successfully meeting a yielding body part to assist in freeing her from such a vile entrapment.  The grip was loosened and she vigorously fought her way out of the imprisonment, attempting to quickly dart away, but then her braid was grabbed and pulled backwards, yanked so ruthlessly that it made tears prick at her eyes in pain.  A scream gargled in her mouth, wanting release but unable to achieve that due to the barrage; as anger inflamed in her, she lashed out a cruelly poised hand and unexpectedly felt clothing material bite underneath her nails… claws?

          A quick glance down at her other hand brought her to the conclusion that she had partially morphed unconsciously, and the young zoanthrope smiled grimly, then swirled around in a circle with her arms outstretched, pointy tips ready to punish.  Viciously clawing him on his bared arm, he fired a condemning curse at her and his fingers around her long hair loosened, relief flowing into her as his submission also allowed her to execute her next move.  She jumped up a bit and kicked out both of her legs, thankfully catching her opponent in the chest, increasing a couple feet's distance between them as he unwillingly tumbled back, though still in a standing position and able to quickly recover.  The youth pivoted to face the opposite direction and notice what other elements of the woods she could use to her advantage, but a whooshing sound caught her attention, distracting her from the original intention of finding assistance from nature.

          "Surprise."  Before she could even turn around to lay eyes on the speaker, infliction shocked the back of her head, causing the girl to fall forward and barely prevent herself from stumbling down to the ground.  She grimaced and her lips quivered at the intensity of the ache searing down her spine while a loud cry exploded out of her when a stiff presence struck her neck, the impact almost forcing her to stumble to her knees from such force.  Blinking lights flashed before her view, clearly suggesting her damaged current state and she attempted to shake them away, but that resulted in a burst of pain throbbing in her temples, making her senses more severely wounded.  Willing the claws to retract back into her fingertips, she hurriedly raised her arms up to cover the vulnerable areas on the backside of her upper body, trying to anticipate the next attack even though she was utterly in the dark.

          But only one spot was her attacker's intended mark; his thumb shot over to press upon the area on her neck, increasing pressure until her eyes bulged in surprise, and a clenching sensation strangled her throat from within her own body.  The girl felt her consciousness waver quite noticeably and refusing to submit, she furiously kicked at the presence behind her, ignoring the dizziness that swam before her view, shaking her head to clear the daze, though she still had been impacted by the blow.  A breeze flew by her side, and within seconds another blow caught her square over her right temple, causing the young student to stumble, collapsing against a tree that covered her with its towering shadow as her hands clutched at the bark to cling on.  A piece of cloth tingling with an alluring sweet smell clamped over her nose and mouth suddenly, preventing her from breathing any oxygen without first being filtered by the toxin that she presumed had the purpose of downing her person.

          "Mmph!"  She resisted, trying to hold her breath long enough to escape as she frantically struggled to rip away the offending material glued to the lower portion of her face, but a warm length pressed against her body, denying her escape.  Heat pounded down on her neck at the closeness of the other person to her position and the pressure was slowly becoming overwhelming; the poisonous aroma seeped inside her when she could not bear to deprive her lungs of air any longer.  Her head swam as her eyes blinked with false lethargy, her vision wavering, and she had to fight to focus on the blur that she presumed was a figure, stepping before her view, though she could no longer hope to use sight to identify.  Mocking laughter rang in her ears when she felt herself unwillingly drifting away into a molding blanket of bleakness, eager to trap her inside and make her submit to internal torture that she inwardly vowed to fight against until her last breath.

"The stubborn never learn."  He remarked resolutely, gazing down at the unconscious prize that he had trapped as he spoke, the limp form starting to slide off to the side of the tree trunk as her hands lost their former reserve and the cling dissolved.  His hold tightened to prevent her from moving any more and he slipped his arms underneath her back and the insteps of her knees, picking her lightweight body up in one fell swoop as a grave, yet a triumphant smirk danced over his expression.  She did not even stir and sadistic pleasure overwhelmed him when he noticed the paleness painting her face, as if even her very skin was frightened of what he was going to do with her though she was unconscious and could not think of her own will at that present moment.  Once his captive awoke, however, the time for amusement would begin, as he was sure to enjoy manipulating and toying with her mind until she begged him for death herself – and watch her collapse in despair when she realized that he could not grant her that wish.

A shame that he had to do away with a creature that exhibited rather lovely and remarkably innocent attributes, but absolutely nothing was worth disobeying his master's orders, and he intended to follow though with his assignment completely.


	3. Tasting Elusive Freedom

**Chapter 3**

**Tasting Elusive Freedom**

          A loud rip elicited into the air as a length of white strip flew loose from its constraints to be used for its intended purpose while the rest of the roll fell onto the table from where it was picked up, left to sit idly alone on the flat surface.  Strong smelling liquid was quickly dashed upon the segment and a slight grimace was voiced as the injured figure tied it around his arm, knowing full well that the steps he took were necessary for a faster heal.  The snow-colored surface was immediately tarnished with the red of pain that had been caused from a recent wound and a quiet curse hissed, condemning the temporarily comatose perpetrator for inflicting him in such a manner.  Fiery eyes filled with deep annoyance swept over the distance of the room to gaze upon the said person, barely lingering on the edge of acting out anger, his muscles tense and aimed to stay that way until bottled-up frustration could be released somehow, hopefully soon.

Just the mere sight of his prize, the girl quietly lying on the bed, was enough to ignite his irises into a startling light shade of red, a rare occurrence for the reserved killer, but his dedicated training calmed his nerves down.  Making foolish mistakes always started with overreacting and he certainly did not wish to fall victim to that trap, especially for a mere nuisance that would soon be out of his care, worth little of his time and effort to sedate her.  But he knew that around this seemingly feeble female, his usually tranquil temper needed to be watched more carefully; she already greatly agitated him earlier in their previous encounter and he had just caught her a short while ago.  His master would be angry if he knew that one of his best and top assassins possessed a vital weakness such as this one, so keeping himself in control was a must at all costs and then again, if the girl _did_ get out of line, he had permission from the higher authority to…

          Laughing aloud at the thought, but not at a high enough level to waken the torpid female, the brooding figure shook his head free of delicious thoughts, wanting to get back on track before he was distracted too deeply and became unable to distinct fantasy from reality.  The temptation of awakening her by using a special, painful method greatly tested his patience, and yet he had to inhibit it, for he would only punish her if she should make mistakes, though he felt sure that her foolishness was going to cause many.  Taking the initiative on the targeted was suggested against, so that the prey would have time to consider joining his group's esteemed cause before letting out that there was no other choice but the former, which then came the delicious act of ending such a pathetic and worthless life.  Yet still, the stationary watcher felt irritation creep into him at being forced to restrain himself from physically acting on his desires, and his eyes narrowed slightly while his hand clenched into a tight fist, causing more blood to seep through the gauze.

          _I must leave this infuriating state._  He thought to himself and turned away from the view, trying to discard the crimson images and tantalizing possibilities flashing in his mind, knowing that if he stayed, he would eventually succumb to those pleasures.  The room quickly became a memory as he exited the area, flying away from the problems that lied so close behind him, breathing down the back of his neck even though he had already left her and was a considerable distance away.  Perhaps he should seek release prior to returning, for surely when she woke up, his resistance would be tested and it was unquestionable that he needed an outlet beforehand to prevent himself from giving into using his normal tactics.  However, the bloody girl had proven herself to be quite the resister, and even his master would undoubtedly agree that those foolishly courageous types had to be taught a lesson in submission; he would be glad to instruct her on that little bit.

*****

          _Mmmppphhh… ugh… ow, my head…_

          A slender arm slowly traveled across a surface with ridged but soft material, continuing the unconscious journey until limp fingers slipped off and hung over the edge, unable to resume the quest due to the lack of additional needed land.  A quiet moan of slight distress lifted itself from the formerly comatose figure and blessedly into the air, drifting into the thin swaying of the breeze that slipped in from the freedom of the outer world and found refuge indoors.  Lengthy whispery brown hair trickled along the smoothness of the white pillow that unwillingly dented to tenderly support the neck and head of the injured figure that lay on the small, dark-colored cot, still lingering between the world of awareness and slumber.  A sifting draft that found its way into the vicinity teased a few tiny green leaves in from the outer world to rest onto the brunette-colored tresses, then moved along to tickle sensitive skin and invoke a strong enough reaction to bring about consciousness.

          Thin eyelids slid up to reveal weakened pupils that enlarged from being kept in darkness for so long, and immediately the owner blinked to focus on the blur that served as the only view, aware enough to want to identify the current setting.  Curious eyes scoured the new surroundings, absorbing the sight of the cottage, noticing the plain tan walls that suggested the inhabitant cared little about decorating the place, bringing about the assumption that this place was not often frequented.  There was only a few piece of furniture, including was the cot that currently was being occupied, and a lone dresser that sat in a rather large and open space to hold clothing, with a tall wooden door directly across the room.  Although there was a stove and lavatory to invoke a certain air of homeliness, a chill persistently swept by the observer's cheek, brought upon by the icy feel of the environment as intuition was trusted; this vicinity had danger written all over it.

          "Where…where in the world am I?"  The girl who had been called Uriko Nonomura whispered to the empty area as she carefully rubbed her head, feeling bewildered as she struggled to recall the events that had taken place prior to her arrival to the current location.  Thinking that something might have happened to her while she had been slumbering, she instinctively glanced down at her body, cringing in preemptive anticipation, and sighed in relief when nothing out of the ordinary caught her attention.  Aside from the migraine that throbbed rather persistently and caused her focus to waver, she forced herself to arise from the bedding, as she wanted to test her leg muscles and hopefully leave the cabin if she was in a good enough condition.  The youth certainly had no plans to stay in the facility longer than necessary and was unsure of how much time she had before her captor returned, though she felt that if she lingered too long, he would return and destroy any hopes of escaping that present day.

          She swung her legs over the edge and planted them on the floor, then gripped one of the corner posts tightly as support before slowly ascending from the cot, eager to see how well her body was doing despite her injuries from the recent battle.  Her knees shook a bit as she began to walk and she briefly caught sight of a sizable purple bruise on her lower thigh, clear evidence that her wounds made an impact and intended to mar her delicate skin until some time passed.  Uriko winced at the knowledge, hating the weakness forced upon her person, but when she looked at the door across from her view, she was determined to make it there, where she considered could be her only chance to escape.  A quick gaze around the room failed to reveal the location of the bag that contained her belongings but the girl scuffed, having more the desire to leave her prison than to search for her possessions, even though a small part of her wanted to pursue such a time-consuming hunt.

          Silently, she crept up to the tall frame that was marked with her freedom and grabbed the knob, quickly twisted it and threw the door open with unnecessary extra force spawned from anxiety, giving her additional strength that could be used effectively if tapped into.  Without even checking for what dangers could await her outside, she sprinted away from the entrance of the cabin while one hand persistently held her forehead, applying just enough pressure to slightly ease the pain that throbbed at her from inside.  Her other arm flailed freely as the girl ran, the blurred surroundings irrelevant to her present frantic mode and she was unwillingly embraced by the winds speeding around her form, whistling what sounded like shrill horrors in her ears.  It seemed they were all whispering of her fate, though skeptic about her current attempt at escaping as if it would have been nothing shorter of death or severe torture should she had stayed in the cottage, awaiting her tormentor to come back.

          With each step that she advanced, her head pounded in simultaneous rhythm, distracting her from clear thought and planning to aid her escape, and to make matters worse, all of the surrounding trees soon started to resemble its previous predecessors.  Wayward branches slapped her face as she breezed through the forestry scenery and countless leaves fell onto the top of her head, quickly becoming entangled into her mussed hair, making the girl look quite the homeless wanderer from her slightly disheveled appearance.  As the afternoon dragged by and the distance covered grew longer, Uriko lost track of the time that passed but one glance at the orange splash of rays slipping away in the horizon convinced her to keep pressing onward, even though she was getting tired.  The ominous shadows that slunk along the pathways she traveled on marred the vision of light born from the sun hovering before her view and made her all the more determined to achieve her goal, become bathed in the security of the withering source of heat.

          The youth stumbled in her tracks when all of a sudden, a single green leaf descended from the sky and on its way down, grazed across her eyelashes and tickled the tip of her nose purposefully before aimlessly landing in the dirt.  She immediately looked up, expecting to see a large tree but when clear skies met her gaze, a small frown of confusion etched itself into her expression as a dark suspicion dawned in her mind, suppressed from the memory of her former fear.  Reverting her attention back to her original intention of escaping out of the forest, Uriko's eyes slid downward, but just as she did so, a flying item shot toward her face with numerous sharp edges yearning to sink themselves into her tender skin.  Yelping in surprise, she was barely able to dodge, throwing her upper body to the side a split second before she would have been struck, and the nameless object went behind her, rebounding off thick bark to disappear deeper into the woods.

          _O-oh no… it's him…_ she realized and frantically turned around to bolt in the opposite direction from where the weapon had originated, the fear of being caught rising quickly within.  Her ears soon detected a whizzing noise and shortly after, sharp points dug into her right shoulder, neatly slicing the thin corresponding strap of her upper attire in half.  The girl fought the urge to cry out and instead allowed only a small whimper to escape her lips; the shuriken confirmed her suspicions and she had to brave through the situation.  Without stopping, she reached a hand behind to her back and gripped the sides of the ninja star, hastily yanking it free from her skin to avoid further crippling and then flung it to the ground, refusing to look at the tips that were now stained with her blood.

          Rustling initiated a short distance beside her and Uriko shrieked, panicking from the painful lingering memory of her previous encounter with the mysterious entity as she desperately wanted to avoid such an event again if at all possible.  While she continued to run from her doom, an image of a loved one flashed through her mind, yet although she adored her sister dearly, a part of her cursed Alice since she had forbidden the younger sibling from continuing to train and improve her fighting skills.  The nurse insisted that there was no way a student could stay focused and do well in school, along with the usual teenage extracurricular activities, and at the same time still participate as an active member of the resistance.  Although she supposed it was just irrational thinking plaguing her in a tense situation, the fleeing teenager found herself placing a bit of blame on the person that tried to protect her but ended up restricting and perhaps partially causing her earlier defeat.

          _If I get out of this alive, the first thing I'll do when I get home is start training so I won't be this vulnerable ever again!_  The breathless escaping girl promised herself, vowing to be prepared should a severe incident ever occur again; she certainly did not wish to be victim to repeated kidnapping, forever tagged with the role of an accursed damsel-in-distress.

          The brief contemplating distracted Uriko from noticing the small star that flew through the air just then and dug itself firmly into the ground, right in the path she was on, but she just kept running, oblivious to the small item's supposedly insignificant presence.  When her next step landed, the tip of her sneaker tripped over the barely protruding stub and she immediately felt the sensation of falling, even though the youth did not seem to realize it until brown dirt came rushing up at her face.  Her hands shot out to prevent a more severe injury, hoping to save her body from being harmed any worse than it already had been, but the collision was still painful as all of a sudden she heard hard breathing very close by.  She grunted as the weight smacked firmly into her back, sending her sprawling into a suspicious pile of green leaves, and as she felt the jarring impact of the earth against her frame, she tasted the tang of blood and registered that she must have bitten her tongue.

          Warmth settled over her body at the new presence, but instead of feeling comforted in a normal situation, it instantly sent ice running through her tingling veins and the pressure on her tender skin soon became vividly agonizing.  After running her tongue over the additional wound on her lip, Uriko began to squirm at the discomfort of her cheek getting bruised by the dry dirt, trying to raise her shoulders up and leave this current state, hating being trapped.  Her legs thrashed wildly in added defense, trying to aid her overall quest as it had before when she was running, but they were soon put to rest forcefully and she squeaked in protest even though she kept attempting to shake her captor loose.  The muscles in the back of her neck were beginning to feel sore, what from being pushed down insistently while her head was continually straining to rise from the earthen grounds and her nose twitched uncomfortably from inhaling an unattractive scent.

          "Mm, how it pleases me to know that you tried to escape," a voice whispered tantalizingly into her ear, hot breath tickling her lobe.  "You are quite diligent and seem to have an advantage in speed, little girl, but unfortunately for you, your brilliance does not shine very brightly so your efforts are evidently wasted, truly a shame for you, I am sure."

          The amateur fighter bristled at the insult toward her intelligence and managed to bite back with, "Huh, how's this for cleverness!" before intently bending both of her legs at the knees, wanting to try a new tactic to remove the weight.  Her eyes squeezed shut with effort as she wrapped her long lengths around the waist area of the figure resting atop her body, and with one strained but swift move, managed to throw her assailant off, much to the surprise of both parties involved.  Uriko relished in the sound of his elicited cry, but wasted no time in celebration as she quickly thrust herself up from the ground and stumbled into a run that was significantly slower-paced than her previous one, dread beginning to lodge itself in her stomach.  Her lips trembled as hopelessness settled into her mind, taunting her with the outcome of defeat on her part; she had been weakened and feared that she would soon be recaptured, especially when the crunch of thin branches soon noised behind her.

          "Damn you…" the profane phrase was spat out behind her tingled with more than mere agitation; the voice that spoke it had vibrated with raw, uncontrollable animosity and that installed more than just a little fear in her.  Never had the youth encountered someone that was so dogged and frantically insistent on her capture and possibly eventual submission to the cruelty of death and she wondered briefly if her sister put up with those scenarios on a daily basis.  That reason was probably why Alice had always been against letting her younger sibling join the resistance, because of the real and actual danger that her life could have suffered, but she never saw that side and instead focused on the negativities.  The brunette hung her head with a barely audible sob, admittedly grateful for the protection, but the tarnished side of the gold coin made her considerably vulnerable to severe attacks such as the current one that was hotly pursuing at her heels.

          Finally, as her worn state forced her to slow down a bit, she felt the end approaching with a speedy sweep that brought sharp points kissing the back of her neck, threatening yielding flesh without a single hesitation to instant penetration.  So bitterly cold it was… and how unprepared she had been for death, the fleeting dark cloud of thought that had never once stayed longer than a moment in her mind since she tended to focus on the lighter, more positive aspects of life.  Reluctantly halting to a complete stop, Uriko dared to breathe as her body froze instinctively, reacting to the threat coming from behind her, facial features grimacing in response to her tender skin being strained almost to the breaking point.  Her eyes immediately closed upon the depressing realization, as she did not want to look at the beautiful settings around her that would soon be taken from her, given to others blessed with life but not the ones rotting underneath the earth.

          "D-do it," she whispered raggedly to the presence pressed up against her back, unwillingly accepting her fate, as the zoanthrope knew from day one that those of her kind always lived in danger, but still, she barely had enough years to deem a worthy life, and desperately wished…

          "Oh, if only…" came the soft, almost regretful reply that breathed hot air upon her sensitive neck as a steely arm came around the front to make its place on the base of her throat, prohibiting her from escape, as if that was an option to her inevitable death sentence.

          "If… if only what…?"  The trapped girl dared to ask, uncertain of the reason why he hesitated to off her if he had gone through such great lengths to secure her capture, and an inkling of hope returned, but she bit her bottom lip in refusal, disallowing it to rise and grow, not wanting to waste energy on a fallacy spewed forth from a dubious source.

"Quiet.  We are returning."  The curt hiss burned into her ear, and then abruptly they began to move, with her being pushed to walk a single way while her guard stood firmly and made sure she thoroughly obeyed his command.  Confused, but not wanting to agitate him further in fear of receiving a harsh reprisal, Uriko followed the direction, trying to ignore the growing ache associated with the injury inflicted on her right shoulder.  Silently to herself, she partially hoped that the wound had enough time to get an infection; the irony of her succumbing to death by that way instead of a more gruesome scenario would surely kill her captor.  He was still stationed around her neck and his nearness right behind her made the girl feel nervous, as his staying so close surely meant that if she made a single mistake, she would pay dear consequences identifiable only in her vivid nightmares.

          As dusk sparkled the sky, Uriko cast a longing glance past the numerous tree trunks littering the area and focused her eyes on the dim lights that were beginning to turn on, the insignia of the city coming to life.  Her expression turned yielding and mournful at the beautiful sight, but she quickly hardened her features, unwilling to let her tormentor catch a single glimpse of what he would consider to be a weakness.  The scenery disappeared pass the viewing of her straightforward eyes and she reverted to her normal position, unseeing of the smirk on the assassin's face as he planned to disrupt the serene mood.  He jostled her intentionally, almost sniggering when he saw her jump slightly and then she released an annoyed huff before continuing on her way, wondering why he would submit to such a childish display.

          Before the bright dots known as stars could appear in place of clouds, the pair spied the tip of the cabin's roof not far up ahead, which gave the brunette the knowledge that she had indeed traveled quite the distance.  With this also brought despair, however, knowing that she had probably come close to escaping, and if had not been for _his_ interference, she could have attained freedom; now she would resent him even more.  A flicker of rage ignited inside the youth at the thought of her captor being the only obstacle that stood in her way, but she only fumed silently, as she could not afford to wreck havoc on the demon behind her in the current situation.  Still, she vowed that if given the chance and the right time, she would summon all of her former training from her Kenpo master, the skills she attained to defeat many opponents in the past and inflict them upon this new enemy…

          Distracted from her thoughts, Uriko barely realized that the entrance to the cottage was right in front of her and she was being rudely pushed toward it in a hurried, suddenly impatient motion.  She would have smacked directly into the tall wooden frame if it had not been for her captor opening the door at the last possible second, and his light chuckle told her that he did it on purpose so she scowled under her breath.  Blessedly however, her neck was released as soon as the entrance was blocked off, but when she turned around to confront the assassin, he shoved her once again, not wanting his prey to see him yet.  Whirling in submission to the motion, her hands shot out reflexively in case she would soon meet the ground, but instead she found herself falling and landing upon coarse yet docile material as the lights overhead switched on just then.

          Relieved that she was on the cot instead of the floor, but still unnerved because of the familiar location, the female zoanthrope turned and opened her mouth to spill her thoughts, fighting back the urge to scream instead.  Unfortunately, that chance was quickly depleted when she found herself being insistently pushed down to the mattress while her breath escaped with a quick and surprised _whoosh_, unable to elicit the desired words after all.  Protest rose up on her lips after she recovered from the recent fall, but she was only able to squeak with the presence of down-bearing weight on her chest and her eyes bulged at the sight above her.  The silent, arrogant antagonist was sitting atop her bosom and bending so that he was very close to her face, making her think that he wanted to steal something she would never give willingly, except she soon learned that was not his intended area of target.

          "What are you-!"  She managed to rasp dryly before he glared over at her with his piercing amber eyes and the daggers in them made her immediately cut off her own words without even meaning to do so, fearing the unspoken yet surely serious threat.

          "I tire of your incessant babble."  He replied coldly, and then averted his attention back to the side of her face, seemingly moving toward the nasty red gash on her right shoulder that he had marked himself, dancing it around it rather intently and raising suspicions.

          Uriko tried again; "I asked you what you're do-"

          "Be quiet."  The predator commanded forcefully, and though his volume was controlled at a low level, she caught the acid in his tone and a hint of irritation tickling his throat when he further continued by threatening, "Do not make me repeat myself."

          "Urrrgh…!"

          Annoyed but curious as to see what he was doing, the girl watched him avidly, astonished to learn that he was tending to her wound, using a swab to dab it with a gentleness that she never thought he was capable of possessing.  The white-tipped wetness touching her skin brought brief stinging pain and made her wince, but she presumed it to be a kind of cleansing alcohol rather than a substance that would poison or deal other harm to her body.  From the tense expression in his eyes, Uriko could tell that he was concentrating on swabbing the blood clean away, and after that had been done and accomplished, he arose and walked over to the table across.  He picked up a thick roll of beige material from the flat surface, and that was when she saw the same fabric wrapped around his arm, right about the same area where she had scratched him in their first encounter earlier.

          Slowly, she eased herself into a sitting position, careful not to move too quickly to arouse his suspicion or show more than just a hint of his well-concealed but indubitably hidden ire, still stubbornly intent on being informed of his identity.  "Who…who are you…?"

          He immediately stopped his motions, his stillness a bit unsettling but Uriko refused to let him know of her secret fright; he was evidently content with such a pose and it seemed an eternity before he finally moved again.  During this time, she got a good, full look of his figure, and she silently admitted that it was nothing short of startling from his dark heels to his black cloth surrounding his head, no doubt covering everything in the front save for the eyes.  A few inches separated their height differences so that was less intimidating, but he had much more to his advantage, such as the muscles of his arms and legs rippling through his thin attire, a silent display of strength.  His arms rose to his face and with slow deliberation, untied what was hiding him from her view and it fell tediously, dragging out its adventure to the wooden floor as if trying to drive her mad from waiting.

          "Hmm, curious as a cat.  Let us see how well your memory serves you…" He finally spoke, followed by low chuckling of amusement at the curiosity being so freely exhibited, barely allowing her ears to catch the sound and his tone tingled with malice that she could not identify as he slowly turned around to give his captive her answer.


	4. Igniting Fiery Emotions

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Gigantic thanks to Andrew Glasco for giving me a hell of a lot of ideas for this chapter.

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Chapter 4

Igniting Fiery Emotions

Initially when she laid her eyes on his face, Uriko's memory failed to tell her his identity and she had to resort to staring at him for a few moments, trying to match his looks with people she had seen before in the past. If he was at all uncomfortable with the rudeness of her actions, he certainly did not show any signs of it, just remained stationary in his position. A quick glance at his steely eyes told that he most likely felt the opposite and as if to confirm her thoughts, a small serpentine grin creased his lips as an unholy light ignited in his dark, brooding pupils. She shifted nervously, unconsciously tweaking the ends of her hair with her fingers as she willed her mind to reveal his name; he had an up on her for knowing who she was and she did not care for that disadvantage.

Meanwhile, the entity of carefully controlled calmness was laughing inside his head and he briefly wondered to himself why he was bothering to shade his mockery of this meaningless girl. Surely in her condition she would not be foolish enough to allow her passions to reign and try to attack him from anger… but she certainly had proved herself to be a rather rash thinker. Though his captive appeared vulnerable and weak, sitting on the cot with her face pale and her body presumably aching from her injuries, he knew not to underestimate her. That understood, if she dared to make a move against him, he would be ready at any time to take her on in battle, and when she failed to defeat him, the right to punish her would belong to him.

As expected, it was Uriko who first broke the silence, sounding rather timid as she asked, "Who…who are you?" _He looks… kinda familiar? But why, and from where would I know him…?_

His first response was to laugh and make her feel even more the fool, but he restrained himself from such pleasure; "Uriko Nonomura… I granted you a look at me to answer your question and now that has failed, you wish for me to reward you further?"

"Reward me!" She repeated, indignant. "All you've given me was a kidnapping - which, might I remind you, is against the law! - and several severe beatings that have painted a whole bunch of nasty bruises on my body! You call me wanting information a _reward_? I think it should be your duty after what you've done to me!"

He brushed off her accusations with a careless wave of his hand. "You are wasting your breath, little girl, preaching when there is no audience present. But perhaps your words have touched a chord in me…" his grin turned a bit more malicious, "For that, I will give you a hint, fair enough? It has been three years since I last left you lying on the ground in shameful defeat, staring into darkness as you tried to comprehend my existence and our chance meeting…"

"Three years?" She exclaimed, surprised that he not only gave in a little to her, but by the information he just released that to her, was useless; after all, who said she was supposed to keep a close account of every tedious detail of what had occurred around her before? "What, you expect me to remember everything that happened to me when I was thirteen?"

"…So young, so foolish," he murmured softly, as if to himself but his true intention was for her to hear and gain irritation from his rude remark, "Why your worthlessness must be bothered is beyond my capability of understanding…"

"H-hey, you shut your mouth!" The brunette jumped to her feet in an effort to rid him of his condescending position; having her captor stand over her head and look down was very likely feeding his own thoughts of superiority. But her mind still whirled with memories, pulling up the events of said three years ago, trying to remember the significance around that time of her life. _Geez, I can't recall anything special happening when I was thirteen… so I was in my second year of junior high, big deal! But I do remember that a year later… oh, how could I forget the formation of the ZLF, those horrible terrorists…_ She could not help shuddering.

"Your face informs me you seem to have acquired new knowledge…" he taunted her, not bothering to hide the growing smile on his expression.

"Are you from the ZLF?" Uriko blurted aloud all of a sudden, chewing her lip after the inquiry; if he was indeed a member of that group, then according to Alice, danger had latched onto her ankles and she needed to escape as soon as possible.

There was no need to deny it. "Yes." She responded to his answer and naturally he relished in her gasp of horror.

"So you're… you're an…"

"Assassin." He helpfully finished for her with a nefarious grin.

"This isn't funny!"

"You do not think so, little girl? Hmm, what a shame, for I find great amusement in this topic…"

"You don't have a heart…" she shot at him bitterly, a pout making its way to her lips.

"And you possess little to no intelligence, but would you really want to get involved in a barrage of verbal insults right now when you could be using this time more productively?"

Uriko sent him an annoyed glare but merely asked, "…What's your name?"

"You really should consider a career as a reporter." Her questions were beginning to annoy him, but he would rather have her pinned him down in battle before he showed evidence of this inferior girl getting underneath his skin.

"Quit dancing around it, tell me your name! You know mine, somehow, so it's only fair that I know yours…"

He released a small sigh; anything that would get her trap to be shut, he supposed… "I am Bakuryu," he started to speak, shifting the position of his body as he did so, raising two fingers and stiffly placing them close to his face, centimeters away from his nose. "…Master of the ancient art of ninja and stealth, user of the Dark."

"A ninja!" She squeaked, feeling a little intimidated by his class; only a fighter with rather significant knowledge of martial arts like her Master Long could defeat someone trained in the ways of ninjutsu. The youth herself was shamefully only a beginner, not even at the intermediate level after three years had passed since she had first started learning from her teacher. He had insisted she observe him longer before dashing off on a possible kamikaze mission, but her intuition told her that the rescue could not be delayed any longer than necessary. Yet she could hardly be blamed for her inexperience, considering she had received just a month of dedicated training in haste to save her mother, which she failed at and that had cost a life…

"So have you finally realized your fragile situation now?" He interrupted her thoughts with that condescending question.

"Sh…shut up…" Uriko murmured rather quietly, not wanting to show signs of obedience but she was truly at a loss for words and was unsure of how to respond without receiving a harsh reprisal.

The killer's eyes flashed with his first indication of emotion: ire, just as his arms fell and his fists clenched to show white on his knuckles and he took a threatening step toward her. "You… never order me around again." With those words, he turned away from her and started fumbling with something on the table, the roll of gauze, she presumed, but she wondered why he would bother bandaging her up considering his feelings toward her…

The girl knew that provoking him further could definitely prove hazardous to her health but she was tired of him being so bossy and trying to make her feel inferior and could not help speaking so. "You can't tell me what to do just because your ego is bigger than a house…"

All at once his head whipped around and his icy eyes held hers captive, the dangerous red in them having an almost hypnotizing effect on her; she found herself unable to move even as he started closing in on her. When he was within striking distance, his hand lashed out and grabbed a hold of the front of her tank top, retracting his arm to pull her toward him at an alarming speed. Uriko pushed her palms forward to prevent herself from colliding with his body but he brushed them away and soon they were both violating each other's personal space. Her eyelids slammed down shut so that all she could feel of his presence was his heat breathing upon her cheek and she felt as if he had marked her with his insignia of death.

The imprisoned one clearly detected malice in his voice as he hissed at her, "You play a dangerous game, Uriko Nonomura… If you cannot control your tongue, I will take the utmost pleasure in removing it."

She was unable to conceal the shiver that ran through her body and seeing her reaction, he seemed to intend on releasing her, but in a rather abrupt and forceful way, she soon discovered. Her face met the bed sitting behind her very quickly as the smaller teenager was thrown on top of it and she heard shuffling movements followed by weight suddenly landing on her back. Naturally, she felt uncomfortable with the mattress pressing so hard against her cheek but her mouth was covered, preventing her from voicing this concern. What she was expecting from him was actions that would cause her pain but to her surprise, she heard a distinct, fast rip and then rough material was placed onto her shoulder, over the injury she had received from him earlier.

He got off of her after that and Uriko sat up as soon as she could, sending him a curious look; she could not help asking him another question, "How come you're so insistent on bandaging me? Wouldn't you rather I die from an infection or something?"

The assassin had been walking toward the table to replace the roll of gauze onto it, but he stopped to grant her a harsh laugh yet he refused to turn and look her in the face. "If I wanted you dead, I would have taken care of that problem myself countless hours ago."

She scrunched her face up in distaste and grasped for a response, blurting the first thing that came to mind, "You're mean."

He snorted carelessly in reply, then added; "If that was a shot intended for my pride, unfortunately for you, it did not have its desired effect."

Uriko lowered her head and gripped the sides, twisting her body in tune with the emotions whirling inside her mind, fighting to decide which one should surface and take control. "You're driving me crazy! No, this whole stupid place is! Let me go outside before I suffocate in here!"

"I am afraid that is not an option for you. I am not your servant, Uriko Nonomura, so unless you have the force to back up your words, there is no motivation or gain for me to grant _your_ wishes."

"I'll beat you to the ground if I had to!" She growled.

His nature surfaced when he nodded, an almost satisfied smile on his lips as he extended an arm toward her, crooking his fingers in a deadly invitation to his side of the arena. "I welcome you to try."

The youth actually considered his offer and shifted her body to her usual fighting stance, but as she moved, pain lanced through her shoulder and hips and she could barely conceal her small groan. Uriko looked up at him and saw no emotion in his eyes, only blankness that scared her; his stony expression proved his carelessness of her well being, a sharp contrast to the way he was acting before. A man who would easily fight to the death with no regrets or obligations holding him back was the most dangerous kind of opponent because even the end of his life was not as important as her defeat. She quickly glanced around the room for additional options and spied a couple of windows, but only one was close to her position and she immediately dashed toward it.

The adversary responded instantaneously, running after her with an agility that matched hers and his hand reached over to grab the girl's braid, jerking it back and bringing unshed tears to her eyes.

__

This guy **lives** to fight… she thought fearfully but was also annoyed at the repeated act of pulling on her hair and quickly thrust her foot behind her, applying considerable force to the kick.

Her attack connected squarely with the side of his right leg and he unwillingly grimaced, but did not let go, merely threw his free arm forward, meaning to arch it around her neck in a chokehold. Uriko squeezed her eyes shut and tried to remember the training her master had given her years ago, one of which she recalled was: _go with the force, not against it_. She went willingly with the motion of her attacker but then stopped and shoved her weight into his body, using her hand to yank her braid out of his grip with a hard wrench, falling back away from him and teetering slightly off-balance. She shook her head to rid of the dizziness and the rigid killer took that precious time to rush forward and with the force of his focused energy into both of his palms, he pushed her to the ground.

The girl was really starting to hate being in this position but she was helpless to witness his arm wrench back as if he was preparing to strike and deliver the final, fatal blow. Sitting on her rear, she scooted back quickly, only thinking of how much distance would bring her safety as she ignored the pricking of her delicate skin with the hard wood of the floor. To her surprise, he did not follow through with the attack, merely stood straight up and looked down at her with clear amusement on his face, silent laughter at her over-precaution. For the first time ever, the arrogant captor smiled widely, but she presumed only for the purpose of confirming her hypothesis to show his power and dominance over her.

"To my own surprise, I find you to be quite entertaining, little girl… I do hope I get to keep you for a considerable duration of time so you can continue to bring me the amusement you have shown today."

Her eyes narrowed irritably as she spat at him, "I'm not a hired clown and this isn't your birthday party, you… you jerk!"

"Your petty insults bore me as much as the disgust I feel toward your filthy condition."

Insulted, Uriko shook her finger at him, playing the role of a teacher reprimanding her student for mouthing off and disrespecting her position of authority over him. "It's your fault I'm all dirt-covered! Who was the one that attacked me when I was walking along, minding my own business, huh?? Who was the one that got me on the ground and rolling around to defend and fight for my own life? Who got me thinking that I was gonna die today and never say good-bye to my friends and family, who would be worried sick from thinking that I was missing?!"

"Your passion is admirable to a degree but repetition will certainly deplete that amount of respect." He folded his arms over his chest and his expression was emotionless, as usual, adding to her frustration, which he knew and felt great strength for disrupting her disgustingly elated personality.

"Uuullll…" she growled, clenching her free fist tightly, not bothering to hide her fiery emotions from him. "…!!! Forget it!" She exclaimed finally, whirling around to face the wall, wishing to focus on beating up a mental picture of him inside her head than demonstrate that with real actions. After taking a moment to calm herself down, Uriko turned back to glare at him as she declared, "I'm going to go take a shower!"

He waved his hand in the direction of a door a short distance away, just across the room from where they were both standing, and she presumed that was the location of the lavatory. "No one is stopping you."

She hobbled toward where he pointed, surprised at the severity of her condition that only allowed her to walk slowly and paused midway to inquire, "…Um, where's my stuff?"

He let out a sigh of exasperation and gestured quickly, "Over there, behind that dresser."

Grumbling to herself, Uriko made her way over to the said object and looked around its backside, spotting her dark blue duffel bag sitting on the floor, which she picked up curtly. She continued on her intended path to the bathroom and made it there with cold amber eyes watching her the entire time, not wanting to take any chances of giving her the opportunity of escape. The girl felt his gaze on her but decided not to comment, as she wanted to avoid yet another disagreement with him for fear that it could lead to a worse conclusion than before. The silence hung over both of the cottage's inhabitants and only noises coming from animals outside could be heard as well as the shuffling of the female teenager's feet.

The aforementioned figure peeked inside the smaller room and searched for the shower stall while a clearly audible snicker was heard behind her but she figured he was just mocking her need for cleanliness. But she thought that anyone with half a brain would want to rid the dirtiness on her body after everything that she had just experienced, all thanks to her cold-hearted captor. He himself was probably filthy also, what with the business he did everyday, staining his hands with the blood of the innocent, ending far more lives than just one by destroying a single existence… More than anything else, she hated the way he seemed to have judged her beforehand and prepared a backlash for every statement she was thinking of or planning to speak.

"…Where's the stall?"

"What do you mean?" He asked in reply, sounding almost innocent so much that his tone would have made her laugh if she were in a different situation.

"There's only a toilet and sink in here, that's what I mean," Uriko fired back, retracting her head from within the doorway of the lavatory. "Tell me where it is already, unless you'd like me to stink up this place even more, or maybe rub some of this dirt in your face… This joke isn't funny, trust me."

He gave her a warning glare but only responded with, "Your opinion is meaningless to me, but nonetheless, I suppose I will admit that I am absolutely serious."

"What do you mean?" She repeated his earlier question with a slight mocking edge in her voice.

"There is no stall."

"…What?!"

"Interesting, you never showed any difficulty in hearing before…" he grinned rather crudely.

"Stop that! What the heck do you mean 'there is no stall'??"

"Pretending to be unhearing will not change facts, Uriko Nonomura."

The girl looked like she was more than ready and willing to plant her fist into his face, yet of course, she could do nothing but inhibit that feeling and try to crush it in the dark corners of her mind. "…Just tell me what you meant by what you said earlier."

"I meant exactly as I said," he answered simply, then suggested with a grand smirk, "You can try to fit yourself into the sink if you prefer it."

She shuddered from frustration. "Oooh, you SO don't want to know what I'd 'prefer' to do right now, you…"

"Enough with the insults." He cut her off coolly, continuing with, "There is a lake located a quarter of a mile away from here. You can use that to bathe in, and if you choose not to, you are out of options, little girl."

_"Stop calling me that!"_ Uriko shrieked suddenly, stomping her feet, creating a wave of heat from the anger that had building up inside her, and the hand she used to hold onto her bag trembled with further evidence. The corresponding arm raised as if to hurl the object at him, the intent clear in her otherwise clouded eyes, clogged with ire and her body shuddered along with it. Her feet shifted to give her a more balanced stance and the heel of her back foot lifted off the ground to assist in the throwing motion should she initiate it. The calm assassin made no move to defend himself but he set his nerves to a hair trigger, prepared for a counterattack just in case she was actually foolish enough to aggravate him.

"Your anger is delicious…" he cackled lowly after a few minutes, realizing that indeed her threat was utterly empty as she moved a couple of steps away from him uncertainly.

Realizing that nothing she did could deter him from his emotionless stature, the girl released her pent-up frustration with a harsh sigh that burned her throat on the way out. She turned her face away from his line of sight before muttering, "Show me where the lake is…"

"Smart choice, Uriko Nonomura. This must be a memorable first for you." He laughed mockingly as he started for the door of the cottage and opened it, leaving it in the same position while he strolled outside and waited for her to follow him.

She trailed slowly, treating the occasion like it was her walk to death, and the closer she approached his dark expression of amusement, the more suffocated her lungs felt. As he led her through the twisting and winding paths of the forest around them, Uriko mused over her options of escape, knowing that she had to construct a careful plan to her victory. The killer showed very little, if any at all, signs of weaknesses and there was no way for her to get what she wanted without exposing a vulnerability in his stony character. But suddenly, she remembered when he had lost a little bit of his cool during her endless inquiries and had moved with the intention to harm her with his hand grasping the front of her tank top, almost ruining the cotton material.

Earlier he had shown evidence proving that his tough exterior _could_ be pricked through the way that he threatened her previously, so perhaps if she annoyed him long enough, he would let her go; the alternative was death, but she had to take her chances…


	5. Testing The Waters

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Again, gigantic thanks to Andrew Glasco for giving me a hell of a lot of ideas for this chapter. Also, to NeoDragon, I didn't use the word "ire" a single time (at least, I don't remember doing so) just to please you.

****

Chapter 5

Testing The Waters

**__**

Now he lets me go outside…

An innocent owl's loud hooting was enough to startle Uriko into jumping slightly and her head whipped around to check the shadowy trees of the dense forest, paranoia in her frightened eyes. The figure with the alias Bakuryu noticed her action and laughed quietly to himself, a little surprised to discover that he was continuously amused with her childish immaturity. His previous remark about her bringing him entertainment was not a lie; he could not recall the last time he had possessed numerous sensations of pure joy in such a short time. Perhaps this girl was his master's way of rewarding him with a toy like her, and he had gotten permission to play with her as he pleased, then turn her over when he was finished in the end…

She squealed just then, annoyingly jostling his reserved posture, to which he first clenched his fist, but soon released it and instead gave her a low, irritated growl that was not intended to reach her ears. Not bothering to give her a verbal response however, he merely kept walking ahead, pushing his way past the small branches that dared to linger in his path. He quickly glanced behind at her, taking a bit of pleasure at the sight of her nervous body twisting and turning everywhere to make sure nothing was going to come out suddenly in attack. She caught his gaze during one of her rounds and looked away immediately with a light yelp, scrunching herself protectively as if anticipating that he would punish her for making eye contact with him.

"Stop fidgeting, little girl," he commanded her coolly as he reverted his head back to his former position, "You are not in danger because I am with you, so be grateful that you are safe with my presence."

_Boy, **that** sure is the understatement of the year…_ The brunette thought bitterly, rolling her eyes behind his back as she hoisted her bag more firmly upon her good shoulder and trailed him listlessly, wondering how much longer it would be before she could wash off his dirty touch from her body. To her relief, they soon reached an open clearing with a shimmering body of water in the middle, surrounded by trees on the outside, concealing the cherished secret within. Uriko's dark pupils widened as she awed at the sight, her lips parting almost unconsciously given the fact that its owner was entranced by the beauty hidden in this otherwise forest of agony. The ever so calm Bakuryu peered at her curiously, not at all being discreet with his actions after he saw that she was too busy admiring the lake to pay attention elsewhere.

The tranquility lingered so vividly that she thought her mind had played a trick; it was impossible to have such serenity in a place where evildoings must have occurred around frequently. The bright moon hung in the sky, its unseen half concealed from her sight due to the periodic eclipse, yet still it shone light onto the water, giving life to the quivering surface. The size of the inland water was rather diminutive and briefly came the thought that it should have been given the label of a pond instead, but that was hardly her great concern. She finally licked her lips in an effort to recall mobility and took a small step toward her bathing facility, clutching the duffel bag to her side tightly, not wanting to have it drop unexpectedly and disrupt the distilled peace.

_I-I can't believe it… this place is so pretty… but why in the world would it be somewhere like **this**? With such ugliness and horrible things around it like…_ she broke off that train of thought, silently finishing it when she stole a look at the killer beside her, surprised to find his own eyes upon her face. He gazed back just as intently, intimidating her with his unwavering stance and she noticed strands of his midnight blue hair dancing in front of his forehead, sliding over his moonlit skin. But even a repulsive, heartless creature such as himself seemed less distasteful in this alluring setting and she had to consciously catch and prevent herself from smiling at him.

"Assuming the obvious fact that you have not suddenly developed an absurd attraction toward me, are you staring then because there is nothing else for you to place your eyes on?" The predator inquired somewhat smugly, smirking at the scrunch of disgust on her face as she shifted away from him and looked back at the lake, comforted by its glamour.

"Ha, ha…" she muttered resentfully under her breath, still overall captivated and feeling a tiny bit of gratitude that the cottage was not equipped with a shower stall after all. "Okay… well, I'll be back in about an hour so you can go now, bye-bye!" Uriko encouraged his leave with a hasty wave of her hand, eager to get him to finally leave her by herself after having to deal with his endless watchful eyes and him practically breathing down her neck.

To her surprise, he laughed aloud, a rarity that she would have considered a valuable jewel if it were not _him_ that was laughing and the reason was different than the fact that he enjoyed mocking her. "Your humor is doubtlessly refreshing. Now I am sure that I _do_ hope I get to keep you for a little while…"

"Quit making fun of me and tell me what you're laughing at, ZLF hound…" she insisted in a soft, whispering tone, hardness glazing over in her eyes despite her somewhat yielding reserve. She yelped aloud when he reached over and grabbed her arm tightly, pulling her in his direction and her feet scrambled to get away but his force was too great.

Shutting her eyes in the worst expectance, she was surprised to just hear another lethal threat slip from his tongue, "If you ever speak to me that way again, your blood will water the forest this night." The younger youth had already been given violent lines similar to the one he just spoke but she could not tell which ones he truly meant or was just trying to scare her; she shuddered at his words. "Now hurry up and get in; you are wasting my time standing out here futilely provoking me to bicker with you."

_If that was such a worthless effort, then you wouldn't have gotten mad…_ a somewhat delirious giggle noised inside her head at the thought and she wondered when she had started acting wicked, almost as if she were following in her captor's footsteps.

The assassin heard the sound that he assumed to carry the intention of mockery but chose not to comment; he was tiring of getting into worthless little arguments with the girl and if she kept arousing his anger, then she would be the one that paid the price. "Get in the lake and take the bathing you desire so much."

She regained her composure and yanked her arm free of his grip, then inquired in all seriousness, "What if I don't want to bathe with you here watching me? That's really creepy, don't you know?"

"I care nothing for your opinions or your discomforts. However… rest assured, nudity does not phase me, and neither will the sight of your weak, pathetic, and feeble female body." With that said, he turned away from her agitated expression, seeming to give her the illusion of privacy as the brunette began looking around for a shelter to hide in while she disrobed.

_Umm… okay, need a tree, need a tree… oh, there, that one looks big enough to block me, even if I have to stick out my arms to get the sleeves off or whatever…_ Somewhat satisfied with her find, Uriko forgot about her irritation and headed over to the spotted living creature, going behind it, briefly peeking out at her keeper before she started fumbling with her clothing. The only indication she gave that she was changing were the periodic shuffling noises made and soon she was practically naked, left covered in a large towel and still wearing the bottom half of her undergarments. The girl just did not trust her forced companion and guessing that he was inexperienced, she doubted he himself would know how he could react to a body that was unwillingly available and nearby, close enough to touch.

Tightly clutching the cotton material around her slender figure, she tentatively made her way out into the public eye, holding a small bar of soap in her free hand while the head of her travel-size shampoo and conditioner bottle was being held by her mouth. Leisurely strolling toward the lake, she kicked a few pebbles along the way, wishing that she could run but knowing her body condition, she did not want to bring it more injury if she happened to trip and fall from haste. After she had traveled halfway there, the girl felt chills prickle goose bumps into her skin and she looked up instinctively, instantly agitated when she discovered he was again watching her. His eyes burned as he stared, seeming like he had free access to her naked form, wanting to see the secrecy that she hid from him and should have had the sole right to decide who could view it.

_…Creepy pervert._ The furtive female scoffed, jerking her chin to the opposite side in an arrogant manner, continuing to walk toward her destination despite her growing urge to flee back to the tree and forget her original intention. Stopping before a considerably large rock that stuck out and hung over the body of water, Uriko carefully opened the folds of her towel, facing away from her adversary. She removed the single bottle from her mouth and placed it on the stony surface and hung onto the soap as she positioned herself to drop into the bathing facility as quickly as possible. With a soft splash and a wild flare of the pale yellow material settling back down to the earth, she was soon surrounded by cold liquid and shivering from the chilly temperature.

_Brrr…_ _it's so cold._ The brunette stood enveloped in the iciness for as long as she could, then quickly scrambled to a level where she could allow her upper body to stick out of the water, but no higher than her waist. She tossed her braid so that it lied straight down her back and slowly began to unwind it, making sure the scrunchies holding them together were transported to her wrist and stayed there. After the leisure process, Uriko lowered her hair into the lake and tried to get as much of it wet before straying over to the rock and retrieving the bottle to discharge thick liquid into her auburn tresses. She scrubbed gently as her head still slightly throbbed from the current day's stressful activities and thoroughly ran down the rest of the long length, rinsing out the shampoo and conditioner when she was finally finished.

All the while, she was mildly but not purposefully aware of her attentive observer watching the bathing girl; in truth, he was ogling her, using his eyes to blatantly explore what he could see of her form. He felt no shame in watching her intently, as she was his prisoner and even if she protested, like he presumed she would if she knew, her wishes were useless and deemed inferior in favor of his own desires. As much as she annoyed him with her constant chattering and relentless questions, he had to give credit where it was due, and a small part of himself admitted that she was not hard on the eyes at all. The shapely youth turned to the sides at certain times to rub the soap against various parts of her body and he could catch momentary glimpses of the soft, moonlit curves molding her chest.

An unfamiliar tingle ignited in his veins, tickling his nerves everywhere it traveled and that caused a look of confusion to crease the young killer's expression as he pondered the strange events silently. _…This absurd feeling, what is it? It could not possibly be… attraction. She is just a new type and I am unused to viewing this curious female human form, that must be all; it is my distinct duty and prerogative to study my victims. _The thought of his pathetic victim having any sort of hold on him resulted in a strong-turned-shaky laugh filled with inconsiderable bewilderment, as the aforementioned concept was foreign and therefore impossible. His emotions were impenetrable; he had and continued to close off people when he preferred so, even from the other members of his group at times and he planned to keep this particular control.

Uriko tried to be oblivious to his presence, convincing herself that she was alone in this world of serene beauty, surrounded by the quiet nature she never would have gotten the chance to experience in her everyday life. The woods had always given her a feeling that someone was in there, watching all the people that passed through it, analyzing which entities were useless and who could be taken and used for any type of misconduct. The bitter knowledge that she could never again take the shortcut to school if she happened to run late one day froze ice into her emotions, the symbolic violation of her intimate existence. Her slathering motions slowed and eventually ceased as she cut her bath to a halt, slowly drifting over to the rock that held her towel, her sideways profile unconsciously allowing her captor a split-second view of her shadowy shaded peak.

A hunger that he could not identify burned lowly within him but he discarded the strange need and dragged his eyes away from the sight of the naked female, focusing instead on the numerous trees that littered the area. Out of the corner in his line of sight he detected movement and presumed that she had once again ducked behind her shelter to change into suitable attire for the night. Shuffling noises and soft whispers ensued, confirming his guess, and his amber irises turned attention onto the trunk that she was hidden around, secretly wishing for another glimpse at her actions. He began tapping his foot, feigning great impatience and yet he found her modesty to be quite amusing; he wondered how would he feel if she had cast her gaze upon his nude body…

_Stop thinking of such irrelevance._ His mind commanded suddenly and he snapped out of his partial trance, scouring around as his eyes hardened at the thought of his pathetic prey catching him in such a vulnerable moment. To his satisfaction, the girl was nowhere in sight and although he was admittedly relieved that she had not witnessed anything damaging to his reputation, irritation steadily rose within him from the wait. Based on his own experiences, it should not have taken longer than a few minutes to get dressed after bathing and he wondered what in the world was taking her so bloody long. He almost suspected that she had somehow managed to slip away and his fists clenched immediately as he started making his way toward the tree that she had taken shelter to previously.

She stepped out just as the persistent Bakuryu had reached his intended destination, colliding into his stalking form and reacting with a short squeal of surprise while her hands flew up into the air. A low growl emitted from deep inside his throat and he shoved her away from him in reflex, backing off as his body instinctively shifted into a battle position and his gaze settled upon his apparent opponent. When realizing that her objectives did not include fighting him, the stagnant killer reverted to his normal posture and only shot her a cold glare for momentarily startling him out of his usual calmness. Uriko glanced at him innocently, not understanding why he looked so angry when all she had done was finished bathing and got dressed, thus fulfilling his wishes of ridding her former 'filthiness'.

"…What did I do?" She inquired reasonably, curious lighting her eyes as she clutched the bag more tightly against her side, unwilling to release it in case she had to move should he happen to suddenly initiate an attack on her.

"…We will return now." His enlarged pupils still flashed with the anxiety to act upon his fighting adrenaline rush but he quickly turned away after speaking, effectively dodging her question by ending the short conversation.

_He's so weird…_ The girl shook her head absentmindedly, huffing a sigh at the constant and unexpected mood changes she experienced coming from the mysterious assassin. He began walking and Uriko immediately started after him, not wanting to be left behind in such a desolate area despite the fact that she much preferred to stay there than in the cottage, alone with her keeper. As much as she hated to admit that he had scared her countless times and still continued to make her creep around him like a nervous mouse, he intrigued her for some reason. The younger youth wondered how a person could so easily discard human emotions such as concern and sympathy but she supposed that was a necessity for him in order to be what he was.

It was summer, but the nights were still rather cool and Uriko shivered in her modest, long-sleeved nightclothes even as she drew the towel closer around her slender form. She kept blinking in the darkness, looking straight ahead to make sure she would not lose sight of the head of dark blue hair as the owner walked quickly, eager to return to secure grounds. The exhaustion that she had been fighting off earlier before and during her bathing period was slowly creeping back and she bit her lip, trying to battle it longer. Although she had carefully washed away the blood from the wounds all about her skin, her body condition could not deny its weakness of spending too much energy.

Apparently Bakuryu was feeling more homesick than she had thought; he increased his pace and the girl's face flickered with irritation but she slipped into a run to catch up to him. In her haste, she had not bothered to inspect her surroundings very closely and the front of her foot caught onto a branch protruding from the ground, causing her to trip. Not wanting to fall and dirty herself again, Uriko quickly pushed off with her free leg and flew briefly, her landing ending up being a hard collision with the back of the figure speeding before her. She tried to catch herself but the forced contact was inevitable and her chin hit adamantine bone, the result a momentary stun while her hands reached out for any support that she could grab a hold of. 

The dark-haired controller felt his arms grabbed, and not anticipating such sudden movement, immediately tensed and started to turn in expectance of another attack, briefly wondering if the victim he had picked up was slightly insane. He soon realized that the limp form lying against his back was immobile and instead craned his neck to look behind him, glancing into the hazy brown eyes of his female captive. The sight of her leaning and resting on him was strange and he could not grasp a reason for her action but merely stayed silent, waiting for an explanation that did not come. She returned his gaze but appeared to carry an air of helplessness and vulnerability, weaknesses that would made him crow under normal circumstances but she seemed to acquire assistance of some sort…

"What is wrong with you?" He seethed the supposed words of concern a bit harshly, leaving no room for warmth or sympathy as he hated the fact that his body apparently did not mind her lightweight against it.

Annoyed with his callous tone, Uriko gritted her teeth and forced herself to bite back a smart-aleck remark that her mind was considering to speak aloud in response to his coldness. "N-nothing… I… I'm just tired…"

"Would you mind being tired elsewhere?" The killer's amber eyes lit with a twinge of excitement at her frail voice but he chose not to comment on that, wanting instead to relish in her failed pathetic efforts to stay strong in his presence. "Your weight baring down upon my back is uncomfortable."

"Are you calling me fat or something?" Bristling from the implied insult, the brunette tried to push herself up and away from his back but her attempt proved futile and a small moan of frustration mixed with desperation reluctantly spilled forth from her lips.

All he replied with was an arduous sigh and then commented, "Bothersome…" yet he answered her silent cry for help by turning around and bending down to slip his arms underneath her neck and the insteps of her legs, steadying his own weight before picking her up.

"H-hey! Get your hands off of-!"

"I am trying to assist you in the _long_ and_ grueling_ journey back to the cottage, little girl, so I would appreciate your silence and cooperation or I will be forced to drop you right here." His voice was heavily tainted with sarcasm in regards to feeling sympathetic for her condition but his intent was true as he indeed carried her and effortlessly continued walking on the forest path leading back to their shared 'home'.

_Grrrr… no way, this is too humiliating!_ Uriko opened her mouth to protest but a huge yawn darted out instead and her eyes drooped heavily; she finally gave into the fatigue and relaxed her muscles, daintily resting her head upon the carrier's sturdy biceps. She fell easily into dead, bleak sleep and the grip she had on her bag strap faltered, causing Bakuryu to curse under his breath when the bulging item fell to the ground and he had to retrieve it, gripping tightly as he did not wish to repeat the action. When he finally arrived back at the cottage, he set the finally speechless girl down onto the cot, removed the towel and carelessly tossed the blue sack containing her belongings to the floor before setting the light-colored cotton material atop it. His task completed, the captor strolled over to the dresser and opened drawers to remove contents that included his own change of clothing, as it was now his turn to go to the lake and bathe.

Before the self-acclaimed reaper left, he cast one last look at his captive lying passively on the bed, small twin trails of wetness streaking her cheeks and he grinned cruelly, then quickly exited before he gave into the temptation of removing her tears himself by consuming them…


	6. Comforts Of Home

__

Special dedications to IndigoSiren; a particular scene in this chapter was written especially for you, my friend.

****

Chapter 6

Comforts of Home

It was midnight and the moon hung well high in the sky by the time the ninja assassin opened the door to the cottage, returning from his cleansing duties, his hair still damp from the lake. He quickly swept his gaze around, fully intending to seek out the girl he had left behind, and to his satisfaction she was lying atop the cot the way he left her, except now she was grasping the blanket with white-knuckled fists. Taking that as an indication of her restless state, he smirked coolly at the sight as he slowly strolled to where she slept, looking down at her as he glowered at his power over the feeble, pathetic female. She shifted her position just then, as if sensing his presence, and the normally resigned killer consciously inhibited a bark of laughter, absorbing her source of delicious agony.

Longing flickered in his eyes when he turned to peer outside the window, yearning to be in the midst of his nightly training routines, practicing his techniques at a time and setting where there were interesting obstacles present. Like the girl had voiced earlier, he also desired to be away from the cottage, feeling confined by the four walls that dictated the territory of nature's forest versus the manmade structure that housed an unwilling accomplice inside. An abrasive spirit that vibrated with forcibly acquired freedom such as the killer himself was unfamiliar with the concept of being prohibited from doing as he wished, despite the fact that he always obeyed his master. Still, it was because of how much lenience and the countless privileges Bakuryu received that he allowed himself to be somewhat restricted at the appropriate times and followed the commands and orders of another person.

When Uriko began to squirm a bit just then and a small moan escaped her lips, her silent watcher almost lifted a hand in a motion of comfort but he immediately drew back, preemptively annoyed by his unconscious action. A look of discomfort and pain creased her expression and she groped wildly through the air, seeking assurance from nothing that was willing to give her what she wanted. Bakuryu himself took a hesitant step away, not wanting the girl to taint him with her inability to conquer such childish dreams that existed outside of reality and should not have been taken so seriously. He scowled at her outreach but her vulnerability brought him considerable excitement; yet another weakness that he could expose to shatter her spirits the next time she got out of line.

_A pity I cannot read her mind, for if only I knew what content her nightmares contained… what pleasure I might take in flaunting them before her and further this weak little girl's misery._ A brittle smile formed over his mouth at the thought but then the moment passed and he contemplated the sleeping arrangements; having the girl in his bed made no difference yet surely she would throw a fit come morning. Although he did not have the slightest desire to satisfy her needs or please her, the dark-haired captor decided to grant her the generosity of this first night to herself and slumber elsewhere in the cabin. He grimaced at his only options - lying on the floor or sitting against the wall - but he had already made the firm and final decision and always kept true to the rare promises that he gave.

After tossing his dirty clothes into a basket that served as his laundry hamper and his towel found itself inside one of the dresser drawers, Bakuryu faithfully retreated to his sleeping area albeit reluctantly. When he sat down with his back leaning against the wall behind him, the girl was now directly ahead in his line of sight, her sheet-covered body brightened and clearly visible thanks to the moonlight flickering into the small room. His choice had been made willingly yet he still harbored resentment, being that the cottage was **his** territory and it was the frail victim that got the undoubtedly more comfortable bedding. Shadowy amber eyes glanced in her direction, narrowed from irritation but no physical actions ensued to carry out dark desires; there was plenty of time and numerous opportunities during her stay with him to arouse anger from her.

Satisfied with his new drive, the assassin bent his knees up together so that his chin could rest atop the union and his eyelids bared down only halfway to keep watch on the girl during his listless sleep.

*****

Back at home by herself, the peaceful and sympathetic nurse sat upon her bed, quietly reading a book when thoughts of her younger sister suddenly appeared in her mind. The silence of the house was almost intimidating and unbearable when she returned from her day work; that was when she realized how much light Uriko's bouncy and energetic personality brought to the otherwise solemn setting. By no means was Alice a person plagued by depression but she admittedly felt little purpose in deliberately making each and every situation more cheerful than they really were, especially if she were the only witness. She sighed as her crimson irises lifted from the text it was formerly scanning and glanced outside the hall, across to the closed door where her younger sibling would have been sleeping if she were present.

A memory of her past happiness and bright outlook on life surfaced as well, reminding her of who she would have gone to whenever she was feeling a bit down or uncertain of how to react in particular situations. She shook her head to clear that thought away but the second that she had touched it earlier, a crack penetrated the dam and out leaked various scenes from happenings of years before. It pained Alice to remember the ghostly wolfish grin that had almost always brought her to smile in return when she was saddened by harsh events and needed comfort; tears pricked her eyes at the recalled loss. The nurse forced herself to stop the maddening rush and instead reflect on the somewhat positive occurrences that happened in regards to the endless fight between the clear-minded zoanthropes and the conniving, provocative terrorists.

The current day had passed by without any ongoing to arouse suspicion or physical action from Alice and her friends in the Zoanthrope Liberation Front resistance group but that presumably came from the fact that they had already fought the night before. Alan Gado, the unofficial leader of the small bunch, hypothesized from his hospital bed that the ZLF was moving to a new location since their present one had been discovered and no longer could be used. He would be handicapped in the medical facility for just another twenty-four hours and yet he complained profusely about being treated so delicately before his wife and daughter both finally calmed him down. Seeing such a strong figure become bruised and temporarily incapacitated made the nurse instantly worry about her sixteen-year-old younger sibling by herself on the trip, with no comforts of home present to heed her possible needs.

_Get a hold of yourself… _The young woman scolded inwardly. _This is only Uriko's first day gone, and since Erika Daweson's mother said that the trip might be extended if the students like it enough, you'd better get used to an empty house for a couple of weeks._ While stopping at a restaurant to eat earlier, she had run into the aforementioned maternal figure of her sister's best friend and during their brief encounter, received that little tidbit of information. Mrs. Daweson showed obvious signs of missing her daughter but she appeared happy for her at the same time, understanding the importance of adjusting to being away from home for soon-to-be-graduating students. When realizing that Alice was slightly more distressed at her sibling's departure, she offered sympathy to the younger woman but that gesture convinced the nurse to stop clinging and being so worried.

_Uriko will be okay,_ the darker-haired sister nodded decisively to her empty room at present time, willing herself to calm down and think only of positive occurrences for the typically optimistic half-beast._ She knows how to take care of herself; she's already sixteen after all, almost seventeen actually, and has a good head on her shoulders to get through tough situations._ With that knowledge and assurance in mind, there was no need for anymore reasons and Alice released a final sigh as she shut the covers of her book together and placed it on the nightstand next to her position. The dim lights faded a moment later as the tired nurse lied down and tried to fall asleep, dreading what events and possible battles would await her and the other zoanthrope companions, but at least she did not have to obsessively fawn over worrying about Uriko's well-being.

Little did Alice know that her dearest and only sister was lying and sleeping in a bed that was just miles away from home and trapped in a cottage against her will, her mind ready to be played with by a cold-hearted manipulator.

*****

The day following the kidnapping was thankfully uneventful; with her captor mysteriously gone a couple of hours before noontime had arrived, Uriko was permitted to roam the forest surrounding the cottage as she pleased. Though she had a warning tagged on her head that reminded her of possible severe consequences that would occur if she attempted another escape, the girl merely scoffed at his cold words and still ran outside, elated to have the illusion of freedom. He had not informed her of when he would return and without a deadline, she could care less about making her way back to the isolated and barely inhabited cabin in time to meet her 'curfew'. She walked until she met a clearing and strolled over to sit atop a large stone so that she could rest for a bit, glancing all around the trees and wildlife to view the hidden and elusive beauty of the supposedly dark and dreary woods as she simultaneously reminisced.

When she had awoken in the morning, the brunette had immediately looked around to lock onto the position of her abductor, fearing for a split second that he had slept next to her while she was unconscious and unable to protest. To her relief, she found him sitting against the wall a few yards across from her, his forehead bowed down to kiss the tops of his knees while his hands were crossed as if he was predicating an attack and wanted to protect himself before anything actually happened. She giggled softly at his paranoia, then realized what she was doing and quickly ceased the noise, scowling at her pleasant reaction to the vile creature that would never have spared a thought before disemboweling her if he felt dissatisfied with any of her aspects. After a quick yawn and stretching her arms up high to release some tension in her muscles, Uriko threw aside the blanket covering her body and rose from the bed, wanting to get all of her usual morning duties done before he woke up to torment her again.

As she was on her way crossing the short distance to the duffel bag resting on the floor, the purposely-quiet girl had to admit that a close up look at his slumbering form revealed certain rugged features that could only be defined as attractive. Through the thin material of his dark red ninja gi, she could make out his rippling muscles, the bulge of his biceps that must have come from endless hours of training and housed a frightening power that lied within this deceptively passive-looking sleeper. His hair was a unique shade of midnight blue and black tangled together, bringing about an air of seductive lethality; there was definitely a peculiar entity hidden inside this assassin and she presumed it had some relevance with whatever his zoanthrope form might be. She looked away all of a sudden, disgusted with herself for giving him those silent, unspoken compliments, relieved that at least he would never hear her say them aloud and give him more satisfaction and smugness over her.

Uriko finally continued walking toward the bag containing her belongings, trying to shrug off the chilled feeling slightly embedded into her mind that she was being watched without her knowing. She quickly glanced at Bakuryu and seeing he was still in his crunched position, confusion briefly lingered over her expression but the girl retrieved the item containing her possessions anyway and headed for the bathroom. Just as the door clicked shut quietly, a pair of amber eyes sprang open and a low chuckle escaped into the air as the furtively observing bystander smirked at the display of foolishness that had occurred before his face. His prey was pathetically oblivious to obvious facts - such as his gaze tracking her every move - but he supposed that it was one of her ways to remain blissfully ignorant to her dire and considerably serious situation.

Within the security and privacy of the otherwise inadequate lavatory, the young zoanthrope completed her intended tasks and finished everything off by leisurely brushing through her long, waist-length hair. She remained stationary for quite some time, taking advantage of the solo period, carefully looking at herself in the mirror, her narrowed brown eyes roaming around to identify each and every single one of the bruises that had been inflicted upon her body. She visibly grimaced as the count climbed higher, until she felt too hassled by the memory of their arrival and stopped adding the numbers together; instead she focused rather intensely on the braiding process that followed the end of her combing. Knowing that a mere thin wooden frame was all that separated her from the cold and brutal adversary sitting outside was unsettling and Uriko hastened her pace, suddenly wishing to leave the cottage as soon as possible.

Slowly and quietly she opened the door after completing her self-given tasks, peeking out cautiously before edging small steps away from the safety of the bathroom, head whipped all around to look constantly. She crept over to the bed with her bag strap slung on the shoulder, and when she reached the destination, the girl pivoted to peer at the wall across, halting momentarily when she saw an empty space that indicated the assassin's leave. Slight apprehension chilled her form as she glanced everywhere in the cottage, but after not spotting his lean, intimidating figure at any area, she merely turned back to set her belongings atop the coarse mattress. A sudden tiny gust of wind that blew behind her made Uriko straighten up immediately and she felt his presence before seeing him, almost silent breathing baring down her neck and causing the short hairs on her arm to rise, coupled with goose bumps.

"I _direly_ hope that you slept well, Uriko Nonomura, for I always wish to look out for the best interest and well being of my frail preys…" came the low, sarcastic words, tingling with the falsity of concern.

The younger youth shivered at his acidic tone but kept her back to his face, disallowing him to have the advantage of seeing her reflexive reactions should he speak so coldly again - and she was sure he would. "I slept great… but too bad I can't say the same for you." She was fully aware of the fact that he had slept on the floor and against the wall to give her the privacy and comforts of the bed yet she could not grasp a reason why an…ice-blooded creature…like him would grant her such generosity. Uriko bent down a little and resumed shuffling through her bag, rearranging the items inside so that her clothes covered the delicates that she hid underneath, away from prying, curious eyes. She paused briefly to palm a small blue pill and after removing a water bottle from the bag and unscrewing the top, she quickly swallowed it with a plausible hand movement, followed by apparent thirsty gulps of the cool liquid, then placed it back when she was finished.

He scowled at her disdain, obviously irritated that she had pointed out him taking discomfort and bowing out to allow her the luxury of a better night's worth of precious sleep to heal her exhausted body. "Cast away whatever thoughts you have that assume I gave you the bed so _you_ could be comfortable… the simple reason is that you are a selfish sleeper, hogging all the space and blanket… There was no room left on that one-person cot."

"Oh, hush about it already, the night's over and I'm not making any assumptions!" Inwardly she was conscious of her lie but aggravating him so soon and this early in the morning could bring harsher retaliation if he happened to be an even crankier person from lack of good rest. "…You like arguing way too much, you know that?"

"Your petty judgement means nothing to me, little girl, are you aware of **that**?"

"Grrrr… forget it!" Uriko threw up her hands in slight exasperation; she was not truly angry but she had to release tension somehow without executing an action that would be considered violent and an attack. The girl turned around and crossed her arms over her chest, regarding her companion with a curious look as her stomach made a small noise, indicating she was rather hungry since she had not eaten since lunchtime of the previous day. "…So how do I get breakfast? Is there one of those American McDonald's around here somewhere?"

He scoffed and dismissed her with a careless gesture. "This is not a shopping center, in case you failed to notice so. Go look in the cabinets and cook yourself something to eat if your empty stomach desires to be filled."

_…I guess that's as close to a straight answer as I'll ever get,_ Uriko mused to herself as she shook her head slightly, then giggled softly at his formal and therefore rather strange word usage to her ears. Nevertheless, she obeyed and walked over to the cabinets opposite where the small stove was, and opened one at random in search for food, hoping there was more than just cans inside. Unfortunately, her wishes were not met and she ended up gazing at an endless row of metallic cylinders on the shelves and with a sigh, she started to skim over the labels, looking for something that she wanted. Finally, the brunette decided on chicken noodle soup and grabbed the said item, setting it on the counter as she turned toward the stove and transported the pot over to the sink to get water.

Watching her as he stood a few feet away with his arms crossed over his chest, Bakuryu smirked at his victim's indecision and the time she took to complete such a simple task as eating and remarked, "Interesting choice." What he chose not to mention was that he also liked the particular can of food that she ended up choosing and often ate it himself, but that little tidbit of information would serve no use in being revealed.

"Let me guess, you hate chicken soup, right?" Uriko rolled her eyes then concentrated on boiling the water and soon had the contents of the can inside the pot and cooked it quickly, as her stomach was starting to hurt from long and drawn-out hunger.

He merely looked away, neither confirming nor denying her conjecture; the less she knew about his character and other aspects that he liked to keep hidden, the better it was for him to wield power and hopefully would never have to relinquish it.

The female zoanthrope rustled around the cabinets for a bowl, and after locating one as well as a spoon, she poured her soup into the circular container, then headed to the sink to dump out the excess water, as she preferred the contents to the liquid. She glanced at the reserved figure briefly and gestured toward the pot before inquiring, "Do you wanna use this before I rinse it out?"

"You need not worry, Uriko Nonomura; I can take care of my own needs," was the curt answer she received and then he shifted his position to face away from her, making the girl feel like he was scorning the sight of her and she huffed in annoyance.

"Fine, whatever, I was just trying to help but I guess you're just too 'cool' for that… you do what you want, even if it's bad for ya, because it sure doesn't matter to me." After she tossed the pot into the sink, she started walking away with her bowl in hand, and ended up taking a seat at the small table a short distance from the stove and began to eat, satisfying the emptiness in her stomach with warm and blessedly nutritious food. Just to be playful and make light of the situation, she slurped a few of the noodles, squealing softly when drops of the soup splashed her nose and she giggled while wiping the liquid off. Agitated by her cheerfulness from such a simple, mere task as eating, Bakuryu growled low in his throat, wanting nothing more than to stand before her and break that pathetic and obviously forced smile on her face.

_This foolish girl even makes eating repulsive with her stupid, joyous enthusiasm; she still must not understand the severity of her situation despite the lenient lessons that I have graciously given her, _he could feel the fiery storm bubbling up within him at the thought. Not wanting to be in her infuriating presence any longer, the increasingly annoyed killer quickly faced the door of the cottage and swiftly moved toward it, feeling the need to make up lost training from the previous night, and at the same time, relieve the growing tension in his muscles. Just as he reached the exit and was about to escape this torrid daymare, Uriko glanced up and seemed to notice his leave for the first time, mutely shooting him a curious look. She thought it strange that he was going to skip breakfast and go outside, but secretly she also wondered what shady business he could possibly have at such an early hour in the morning.

"H-hey, where are you going…?" She asked, her hand paused in mid-air with the soup-filled spoon dangling just inches away from her mouth, ready to be inserted and consumed.

"That is none of your concern…" he hissed at her and only halted briefly to speak before he left, "Heed my words, Uriko Nonomura; if you are missing when I return, you will be severely punished and perhaps find your entrails lying around on the floor come next morning."

"Eww, come on, I'm eating!" The girl immediately scrunched up her face in distaste, feeling a little uneasy quirk bounce in her stomach as her mind unwillingly conjured up a gruesome image of his horrible and vile threat. "Geez, you're so disgusting!"

He just smirked at her response and left, slamming the door shut behind him with more force than necessary, jolting the remaining bystander's nerves as she shot a dirty look in the direction that he had disappeared off. Still, he had not restricted her from leaving during the time that he was gone so technically… she could explore the forest as long as she made it back to the cabin in time to meet his placid, emotionless returning face. Uriko finished the last of her soup and rinsed everything in the sink with hot water and then placed the bowl, spoon, and pot back in their previous respective locations for later usage. The girl changed into a more casual outfit of her usual thin T-shirt, along with a pair of khaki shorts, then left her hateful, forced containment as well, running joyously into the warm sunshine, using many precious hours to familiarize herself with the surrounding area.

And so here she was now, getting the rest that her body desperately needed after going through all that hassle yesterday, sitting passively on her chosen large rock with her knees bent up to press against her chest. Uriko felt peace settle over her form as she quietly glanced at the sun in the afternoon horizon, shading her eyes from the harmful rays, but unable to resist peering at the dazzling colors that mixed with the usual blue sky to indicate the coming of dusk. She eventually turned away and continuously looked around, a bit saddened by the reminder of her loss of freedom that prevented her from spending leisure time as she pleased. Wanting to take advantage of the short period as long as she could, the sixteen-year-old watched the atmosphere unfold into the chillier form of darkness, and waited for the night to inevitably steal her back to the cottage.


	7. Adjusting To Difficulties

__

Once again, special thanks to Andrew Glasco for his help with giving me ideas.

****

Chapter 7

Adjusting To Difficulties

By the fourth day of her stay, Uriko was growing increasingly tired of being confined; although she had not been harmed since her attempted escape, she still felt attacked by being watched so closely. When sunlight peeked out from behind the mountains, she ate her breakfast with cold eyes glaring her way and then went outside to enjoy the nature that she had taken advantage of so inconspicuously before the kidnap. As soon as dusk turned the trees dark and shadowy, the girl slowly and reluctantly went back to her wood-constructed prison, always finding her captor inside, pacing around as if he was impatiently awaiting her return. She had dinner and bathed in the lake with her own personal peeping Tom nearby, and finally finished the routine off by sleeping in the cot by herself at night, hugging the blanket in a deathly squeeze, her only form of disillusioned comfort.

When she awoke early one morning, her eyes searching the room curiously to pinpoint where the assassin was sleeping as usual, a plan formulated in her mind to escape from the desolate hellhole. Merely looking at his slumbering form was enough to make her eyes flash with irritation and a tiny flame burn inside, but since she wished to heal from her already-present wounds, she never acted upon those feelings. Still, sharing the same living space as the arrogant ninja had taught her few, yet very precious traits of his personality; she observed that the happier she seemed, the more annoyed he was and tended to express his emotions once in a great while. There was considerable danger in provoking him and he had shown signs of wanting to deal severe harm to her person but at the last second, he was able to restrain himself from possible bloodshed and left the cottage.

Despite his unique build and uncanny endurance, as well as the fighting skills he had seem to perfected, Uriko knew he was still physically only human, just without the emotions that most normal people possessed. She ascended from the cot that served as her sleeping furniture and grabbed a hold of her bag strap before bounding over to the bathroom, wanting to use it before her adversary woke up. With the door closed to allow privacy, the teenage brunette performed her usual morning tasks, all the while taking a good look at herself, trying to keep track of how much her body had healed with each passing day. The atrocious, multi-colored bruises that formerly painted her skin had almost fully disappeared and the aches in her muscles died away as well, letting the imprisoned girl walk and run at normal and accelerated speed again.

And as she did every morning, Uriko released a small blue pill into her palm and swallowed it quickly, aiding the digestion with a swig of water from her bottle that she had to constantly fill from the sink. She formerly took the said medicinal item with great reluctance but in her current situation where nothing was predictable and she had absolutely zero trust in the sinister Bakuryu, the girl praised her sister for advocating its importance. That being known, she felt her time was limited and had to escape before the precise and hardheaded killer full gathered his plans together and delivered her away to a third crime scene. At that thought, the less-experienced zoanthrope closed her hand tightly around a small white bottle that contained pills similar to the ones she took daily, only what she held was used for an entirely different purpose.

_Now, how to trick that creep…?_ She wondered silently to herself, needing to plot her actions carefully and make sure she remained absolutely in her normal character as to not arouse suspicions from her perceptive prison guard. Uriko paced around the tiny bathroom as much as the limited space allowed her to, all the while thinking back to the instances where Bakuryu had been unable to completely keep his cool. Those had unfortunately resulted in painful outcomes for her, but at least she knew that she could get underneath his tough skin, thus proving he was not invulnerable as he tried to convince her. Then she remembered: whenever the auburn-haired youth smiled and if she could catch sight of his expression, he would grimace and turn away with his arms tensely and rigidly hanging by his sides.

_Hmmm… I guess his reaction makes sense in some dark, twisted way; after all, what good would a mean, cold-hearted killer like that evil Bakuryu see in a smile if he has no reason to be happy himself?_ She snorted slightly, disliking this icy figure that utterly disregarded the light side of life and had the nerve to scorn other people who appreciated the gifts of natural beauty in the world. As Uriko changed into a simple white junior shirt with a pale yellow jacket over it and slipped on a pair of light pink shorts, her mind buzzed frantically to formulate a plan that would shield a veil about her clever captor's eyes. Her hand gripped the bottle more tightly as she decided what needed to be done and dumped out several pills into her hand, then carefully stored them in her pocket for later, hopefully effective use.

_Okay… this is gonna be risky… but here goes!_ The unusually quiet girl placed everything that she finished using back into her bag and opened the door with a wide, confident swing, wincing slightly when the frame banged against the wall behind it. She could not help a shrill giggle that escaped her lips when she saw the assassin jolt and spring into a standing position with startling speed, his battle-eager eyes roaming the cottage for his supposed-opponent. When his gaze fell upon his victim, he instantly presumed that she was the source of the atrocious noise and scowled his disapproval to her for awakening him so abruptly. Uriko merely raised a hand and bashfully waved to him in return with a cheek smile to accompany the action; the astonishment on his expression in response was priceless.

"'Morning!" The extra-perky female called out cheerfully as she bounced over to the wall where an electrical socket was intact and removed a small boombox from her bag to plug it in and allow music to blare from the speakers. Annoyance immediately flickered over Bakuryu's face and his eyes glared daggers at her but since her back was turned to him when she started dancing around, she did not receive the bulk of his intended message. Her long legs flashed through the air as she swung them up, effectively stretching her weary muscles while her arms flailed wildly from the speedy tempo of the current song. The tickled assassin watched her anxiously, trying to discover her reason behind this bizarre show and wanted to end it before admitting that her movement was just a bit captivating.

"…What do you think you are doing, little girl?" He finally questioned, inserting as much agitation and command into his tone as he could, his eyes never leaving the sight of her body.

"I'm dancing, what else does it look like?" Uriko answered simply, releasing a huge sigh to compensate for disrupting the pattern of breathing that she created to give her the most endurance for her particular form of exercise. "I haven't been doing anything these days but walking around, so why can't I dance now and have some fun?"

"I was under the assumption that you enjoyed exploring the forest and the wonders of your precious nature…" he smirked coolly, faltering her for a second as she did not realize that he had made her so transparent.

"Y-yeah, well, that's not gonna help me with keeping my body in shape!" The girl declared after resuming her freestyle dancing, risking a physical retaliation without looking his way, "I'd ask you to dance too, but you'd probably look stupid doing it and I wouldn't wanna humiliate you or anything, teehee…"

"I am sure that my feelings are of utmost importance in your priorities and intentions…" Bakuryu muttered sarcastically, then waved the foolish female off and quickly headed into the bathroom and shut the door to gain much-needed privacy before she tempted him further and forced his emotions to erupt.

_Yeah! He's definitely not too happy with me right now…_ she snickered into the palms that she covered her mouth with and thought of what else could be done to string the social amateur along. The determined Uriko patiently waited for him to come back out into the main room, using her time constructively to keep dancing and release her built-up tension and anxiety from following through with her plan. She knew that it was a dangerous game that she initiated, but if the outcome gave her what she wanted, then the process of getting there was well worth the effort and she had to risk it. Dimly the young student conjured a mental picture of her loving sister in her mind and silently whispered a message to her; she was tempting the devil to see her small remaining family and her adoring friends again.

By the time the aching ninja returned to the same room his prey was in, the music had been turned off, the boombox was gone from sight, and the girl gave him a rare surprise by leaping onto his back as soon as he stepped out of the lavatory. His spine must have been tortured and beaten during his sleep, for his muscles hurt like hell, and her body weight, although very light, was additional pressure that he just could not handle in his current state. Bakuryu's instantaneous reaction was to throw the hyperactive female to the floor but her legs locked securely around his waist, stealing that precious option away from him. A dangerous growl escaped his throat at her persistence, yet he was curious about her action and that tiny sliver was what convinced him to stay temporarily passive and find out her intentions.

"…I am waiting for you to explain yourself, Uriko Nonomura," he initiated after a quiet moment of her bouncing slightly on his back, adjusting her weight so that she could ride the most comfortably.

"I wanna piggyback ride." She replied simply, smiling widely even though she knew that he could not see her expression, and then continued teasingly, "Hmm, are ya trying to say that I'm too heavy for the all-mighty Bakuryu?"

The dark-haired assassin remarked candidly, "From what I have observed of you, your ears filter every statement I speak and you tend to only hear what you desire, so even if I do confirm your hypothesis I am sure you will find a way to twist my answer around. Now, I want you to inform me of your purpose of being on my back, little girl…"

"I already told you, I want a piggyback ride!"

"Define your atrocious slang terms."

She sighed in exasperation. "Oh, don't play dumb; a piggyback ride is what I'm getting from ya right now!"

"You dare insult my intelligence…?" Even though his tone seemed agitated and his words were spoken a little harshly, he did nothing to punish her, allowed the perky female to keep her position as well as the slender arms she dangled around his neck. "Hrmp… allow me to reveal that I do _not_ play anything, Uriko Nonomura, unless it involves an outcome of physical or mental torture that inevitably results in breakdown and a victory in **my** favor…"

Trying to hide her real reaction to his troubling confession, Uriko instead rolled her eyes, doing that for herself because she knew full well that he could not see her actions, and commented, "You really need to loosen up and have some clean, normal fun; being stuck here without any entertainment at all, it's no wonder you're so depressing all the time, Baky."

The new unexpected nickname was unwelcome and he snarled violently, his clenched fist trembling a bit from the overwhelming desire to rip her off from his back and force fear into the foolish girl as she lied on the ground. "Do _not_ ever call me that again if you wish to keep all of your insides intact…"

"Well actually, I think that if you can call me 'little girl' all the time, then it should be okay for me to call you Baky! It's only fair, right?"

"My grounds here, as well as numerous situations in real life, do **not** guarantee justice, so remember that before you allow your loose tongue to foolishly spill forth words freely from now on, Uriko Nonomura." Though he spoke so, Bakuryu was slightly amused by her reasoning of calling him by a different alias and began to walk toward the section dubbed the kitchen area in the cottage to prepare breakfast for himself. The girl rode his back the whole way, trying to be discreet as she occasionally raised her nose to his hair and sniffed the midnight blue tresses, finding to her surprise that he smelled clean despite the fact that she never saw him step into the lake for a bath. He vibrated with deadly strength but she inhibited all of her secret frights inside, instead focusing on the new outfit that he had changed into while in the bathroom, marveling at the way the skintight material outlined his battle-trained muscles.

The controlled ninja, on the other hand, was deathly curious of discovering the reason behind her sudden and slightly pleasing aggressiveness but part of him wrote it off as just another one of her personality traits that he found to be quite annoying. However, he was unable to deny the light tremors that shook his neck whenever she breathed on him, tickling his skin with her calm and steady, repetitive rhythm. He suspected that the naïve youth was playing some sort of game with him, perhaps trifling with his temper to see what kind of reactions she could invoke, just as he had admittedly done to her as well before. His lips curled into a small, amused smirk at the thought; so, she wanted to tempt him… well, he would not mind participating to see who would rise the victor from such a unique, presumably non-physical match.

"Hey, I want some breakfast too," Uriko piped up just as Bakuryu was retrieving a can down from the cabinet and his hand lingered between descending to the counter and closing the small wooden door.

He decided to shut it while remarking nonchalantly, "Then make it yourself; I believe you are rather familiar with the process."

"I'm kinda hanging on your back and not that close to the sink in case you didn't notice…"

"I did not force you to be in that position, so get off and cook if you are that concerned about feeding your stomach."

"Phooey, I didn't know you were so selfish, Baky…" was the pouty brunette's response as she watched her kidnapper grab a pot and pour the contents inside before setting it atop the stop, turning the dial to initiate warming.

He chuckled lowly and tossed the empty metal cylinder into the trashcan underneath the sink while surprisingly stating truthfully, "There is so much that you do not know about me… You understand far too little about the agonistic possibilities of life and your opponents…"

"Maybe, but I do know that you probably won't like me doing this!" With that bold exclamation, Uriko reached over to the heating soup and dipped her finger into it, retracting quickly to lick the liquid off in her mouth before he had time to smack her arm away or counter otherwise.

"What the…? You…!!"

"What about me?" She inquired innocently, moving her head so that he could see her face and bare witness to the playful sparkle in her mahogany eyes as well as take note of the teasing smile on her lips.

"Grrrr… I should warn you that thieves who are discovered will usually be punished, young Uriko…"

"Geez, you're really getting mad over such a little thing like that?"

He snorted when her giggle, obviously teasing and directed at him, reached his ears and instantly grasped for a response to defend his honor; "Hah… if I were truly angry with you right now, you would not be in such a comfortable position, little girl."

"Uh huh, sure, if ya say so," she acted like she disregarded what he said, repeating her previous action by once again dipping her finger into the soup and consuming the wetness in her mouth, sniggering inwardly at his annoyed scoff.

"Stop that already, you annoying little-"

"-Girl?" Uriko giggled at his predictability while furtively retrieving stored objects from her pocket and then as a distraction, blew air into his ear provocatively just as he was pouring his breakfast into a bowl, causing him to stumble a bit in surprise.

"…You are particularly irritating this morning, Uriko Nonomura." Bakuryu hissed, yet still he did not make any moves to physically punish her and in his distracted state, he failed to notice four small objects falling silently into his soup when he turned to place the pot into the sink to be washed later.

Meanwhile, the girl sighed inwardly in relief that he had not seen her action; she peered at the liquid while her adversary's attention was focused elsewhere and was thankful for the fast-dissolving aspect of the pills, as they had already disappeared. Now all she could do was wait for him to finish his meal and frantically hope that the medicine's effects would work even on a supposedly superhuman such as the assassin himself. Her purpose served, Uriko wanted to be let off of his back even though she enjoyed the ride and had to admit that she was impressed by his muscles and build, surely proof of his strength and dedication. A small shudder ran through her body at the thought of fighting him again and she desperately prayed that she would not be put in such a position anytime soon before she was ready.

"Am I getting heavy now?" The lightweight girl asked all of a sudden, keeping her tone light and teasing, trying not to let her eagerness to leave the close proximity with such lethality show too obviously. "Do ya want me to get off so you can eat?"

"Thank you so much; I would greatly appreciate that generosity." His words were drenched in sarcasm, as she had expected and nothing less, but still his captive kept true to her word and slid off his back, her feet gently meeting the floor upon descent.

Her actions confused him more than he would dare to admit aloud; Bakuryu narrowed suspicious amber eyes in the amateur fighter's direction but he did not speak a word, concealing his thoughts from her as usual. He watched as she turned around and ran about the main room, stretching her softer and less-developed muscles, all the while wondering to himself if she ever ran out of her apparently boundless energy. After a few minutes he became bored from such little action and speedily drank his soup without the use of a spoon, relieving the hunger in his stomach as Uriko periodically shot discreet little looks at him. When he finished, the darker-haired resident of the cabin crossed over to the sink and casually tossed his bowl inside, somewhat desiring to know why she had not eaten herself but figured she wanted to do so alone.

"Will you eat after I depart?" He inquired curiously as he observed the formerly joyful girl resume her previous dancing routine and took note of the fact that her performance seemed a bit sloppy and unfocused this time.

She glanced at him with an unidentifiable emotion in her eyes and to his mild surprise, her hands had begun to wring together, then quickly transported behind her back when Uriko realized her own action; "Why do you suddenly care?"

"Questioning you does not require concern on my part," Bakuryu retorted with slight weariness, cursing the powerless female for having the need to contradict every other one of his statements, oblivious to the sudden weight bearing down onto his eyelids.

"Y-yeah, I guess…" Was that an actual… stammer that had just come from this girl who spoke too bloody often and overeagerly but usually vibrated with endless bouts of foolish self-confidence?

Well, this certainly was a new and profound side of her that he wished to explore; the idea of Uriko consciously displaying weakness was remarkable and he wanted to use that against her in the future, but for now… "As much as I enjoy witnessing your timidity… What is bothering you, little girl?"

"Wh-what? Oh, nothing, nothing, I'm just… a little hungry is all…" she looked away from his investigative gaze, and this further surprised him considering she had been overly friendly to him earlier and now she was shrinking back as if scared of him.

His vision wavered just then and he was stunned for a second, then shook his head to clear the dizziness but it came back, hitting him with a stronger wave the second time that almost made his knees stagger. Confused about the sudden onslaught but immediately wanting to discover the source of his discomfort, Bakuryu lifted his eyes quickly and locked onto his target, who was slowly inching away. A vicious snarl elicited from his lips and he instantly sped toward the girl, shocked by the unwanted weakness plaguing him as his body failed to carry out his command and he ended up stumbling a mere couple of yards from touching Uriko. She shrieked and leaped out of the way of his tightly positioned hands that were ready to grab and choke, pivoting and running until a wall prevented her from going any further.

"You… you despicable little wench… what did you do to me…?!" Bakuryu hollered as loudly as he could, firing his words with heated rage and betrayal, making the shivering girl wince and cover her ears from the volume that had been increased considerably due to her sensitive hearing. She offered him no answer and that in itself was more infuriating than anything else she could have said; clearly this brainless brat had managed to trick him but he would not go down without first inflicting damage. Carefully gathering his energy together, the drugged yet determined fighter crossed his arms about his chest and then lashed them outward as a flare of energy enveloped the pair, soon revealing as huge, vicious claws when the energy dissipated.

_Eek! What the heck kind of animal is he?! _Uriko wondered briefly as she pressed her back against the wall as hard as she could but the distance between the two was far too little and his weakened dash still brought her pain when sharp points slashed across both of her shins. It took a bit of effort on her part not to cry out at the newly opened wounds but she bit her lip determinedly and jerked her face to the side, thrusting her fists up in a defensive move. Frantic shuffling noises informed her that although he had fallen in his clumsy haste, he was getting back up and preparing to strike her again; she reluctantly opened her eyes, wishing to protect herself better this time. The cowering youth was startled to discover how close he had gotten to her in just mere seconds and now his eyes were glaring deeply into hers, his arm pulled back to deliver a harsh blow.

Uriko shielded the most vulnerable areas of the upper part of her body, covering her eyes in the process as well, anticipating the worst but to her surprise, silence greeted her curiously perked ears. She lowered her hands and squealed when she found his face dive down extremely close to her, the tips of their noses touching as his lips pealed back to presumably spit forth vile comments. His hands shot forward to dig the long claws into the wood of the wall, holding his depleting form up as his pupils continued to roar with stormy, ferocious fire at the sight of his victim that had bested him this once. The intimate position made the sixteen-year-old gasp short and uncomfortable breaths, her heart pounding furiously as she tried to figure out how he was going to punish her.

To her much needed relief, all he could do was rasp hatefully, "Even if you run away from me, Uriko Nonomura, you will never be able to escape the glory of the Zoanthrope Liberation Front; no matter what the costs, I promise you that we will bring you back in the end…!" With that, Bakuryu delivered one last scowl as his eyes glazed over and his silver weapons retracted into normal human nails, greatly loosening his grip on the wall, forcing his stature to falter and his body started sliding down to meet the floor.

Uriko trembled from the events that had just unfolded before her but quickly gathered her wits together and hastily stepped over the unconscious body, heading for the door, grabbing the blue bag as she passed by. An overwhelming desire to run as fast as inhumanly possible drowned all other rational thought and the girl tried to obey, but unfortunately her most recent wounds slightly impaired that vital ability. She felt no regrets tainting her conscience as the injured zoanthrope stumbled her way out of the cottage, grimacing at the angry slashes that had penetrated one of the most vulnerable areas of her legs. A fast glance at her surroundings as she tried to remember the layout of the forest from her constant but careful past explorations and then she darted off toward her freedom, never looking back.


	8. A Haunting Memory

_A particular scene in this chapter will please fans of a certain couple. IndigoSiren and Andrew Glasco, you both might probably like it too, although for different reasons._

**Chapter 8**

**A Haunting Memory**

Now that the main part of her plan had worked, it was time to complete the tasks with her escape; unfortunately, the girl had new injuries to deal with but she felt that her goal was too close to fret over such insignificance. It took a few minutes for her to realize how slow she was traveling because of the fresh wounds on her shins and she sighed irritably, knowing there was only one option she could take to solve that problem. Slowing to an abrupt stop, Uriko closed her eyes and dropped her bag soundlessly before flinging her arms around in a circle, feeling familiar yet long-drawn and foreign changes come over her body as she morphed. It had been a good two years since she had used her beast form since there was no other purpose using it other than fighting and goodness knew it was quite some time ago since her last fair and aware battle.

After immediately transforming, the feline felt herself giving into the cat's instincts for a second and she bent down into a crouching position to start licking away the blood on the front of her leg, nursing it to faster recovery. Coming to a realization a moment later, she shook herself free of the action and darted over to where her bag was; biting the strap with her sharp teeth, the formerly human girl set off once again. With two pointed ears that were perked attentively into the air, trying to pick up each and every sound, she felt better prepared, especially as her newly-reddened eyes were avidly searching the surroundings. She could hear many of the forest creatures scampering around the dirt-ridden earth and even noticed the light noise of flapping wings coming from the birds that took flight overhead.

Because she had explored at least half of the large forest rather thoroughly due to the past several days, Uriko was able to sniff out an exit and trust her instincts when she raised her nose to the air and detected the strongest current. The blue bag bounced against her chest periodically as she ran down the chosen path, occasionally making her breath come out short but she still would not allow that factor to deter her. The female cat's furry tail swayed casually behind her moving form yet stayed alert and was fully aware of the changing winds and the rising temperature that had come with the early arrival of the sun. Her stomach growled at some point during the escapade and the smaller-sized zoanthrope inwardly cursed at herself for not eating before attempting her plan but it was definitely too late to go back now.

She still wanted more speed to hopefully progress further and the morphed-feline resorted to traveling on all fours, feeling a strange pang of shame at her new position, but at least no one was around to witness her giving into the animalistic side. Light brown fur rippled with the hasty movement as the wind caused waves to be pushed back so that even the separated darker-colored stripes became molded to the daintier shade. Her blood-red eyes were keen and darted everywhere to locate the opening that would lead her away from the forest and back home, to where she could be safe and resume a somewhat normal life again. The outside environment was an enormous relief, very different compared to the musty and confined air she breathed when trapped in the isolated cabin, sharing such small space with a dangerous figure that fed off of her pain…

"Mrowl…" a small whimper elicited from the youth at the thought and she furiously shook her head to discard the negativity, wanting to daunt on the light at the end of the tunnel instead of dark possibilities. The sleeping pills that she had tricked Bakuryu into taking usually knocked her out cold with just a dosage of two quantities; she would sometimes get insomnia at the most random times and liked to be prepared for it. Of course, Uriko was only counting on using the medicine if she happened to stay up too late talking to the other girls at camp, but unforeseen circumstances gave her this new and rather desperately desired opportunity. She had no idea how long the effects would take to wear off but she wanted to put every minute to good use and further her escape until she was able to reach the very end and be free, making the kidnap a mere nightmarish past event.

Though the girl was kind and sympathetic, she was not so to the degree of her sister and Uriko felt no guilt whatsoever for having to drug the ninja killer in order to attain her overall desire. A prick of that emotion tried to settle into her mind but she heedlessly warded it off; Bakuryu would undoubtedly resort to much more drastic measures to get his own wish: conquer her into submission. She could tell that he enjoyed breaking down mental barrages and using physical force if he saw fit to suck the vitality out of his victims, awarding him with a victory and presumable praise from his master. His eager willingness was uncanny and far too dangerous for any one person to have, but then again, he seemed to have lost his heart a long time ago and spared no room inside to hold such basic human emotions as compassion and sympathy.

_Sigh… I do feel a little sorry for him, I guess… but he's just so evil and merciless that I'm more worried about my sister having to fight him in the future… darn that ugly old Busuzima for twisting the mind of a normal boy!_ The cat peeled her lips back to snarl, pity filling her at the lost soul, the stinging knowledge that he would have been just another average zoanthrope teenager roaming the streets and attending school if it had not been for a certain, God-playing cretin. As she wondered how old Bakuryu was – he could not be that much older than her - she remembered that her sister's deceased lover had a younger brother but he got taken away by the ZLF, and from the way the situation had sounded, been killed by them as well. When inquired of his status before the atrocious event took place, Alice had told Uriko his name was "Kenji" and that he had been around her age, a mere few months older, as well as information of his adoption and his little knowledge of a scattered past.

In fact, the brunette briefly recalled a glimpse at and short encounter with the boy when she had accompanied her sister on a visit once over to the Ohgami residence, during the earlier stage of the budding relationship between the nurse and her boxer…

*****

At the time several years ago, it was the summer before the young girl's third year in junior high and she had been thirteen, almost fourteen; she never met this mysterious beau before and was curious about, but she barely laid her eyes on him when the sisters arrived. While Alice had made affectionate eyes at her boyfriend and the two had walked off to converse quietly, strolling away from their respective younger siblings, Uriko was walking around the living room listlessly. She wanted to explore the Ohgami home and was rather uninterested in the whispered plans of a possibly-harmful group that had been rumored would form sometime during the next year and what steps could be taken to counter that effort. Bored dark brown eyes drifted everywhere and she eventually wandered into the hall, so curious of her surroundings that she had not noticed a figure descending down the stairs and the two bumped into each other.

"Ow! Hey, what the-?" The younger girl exclaimed, raising her hands defensively at the unexpected body check, jumping back immediately to carefully regard and identify the newcomer.

"Who's there…?!" A voice slightly deeper than her own asked, sounding a bit harassed and the person attached to it wore a curious look on his expression while the dark blue hooded sweater that he donned covered his other features. She eyed him carefully, taking inner notes; although he was only a few inches taller than her, he emitted a constant deep aura of maturity that convinced the girl he had to be several years older. His stance appeared casual at first but she realized that he was truly rigid when she saw that his arms had curled up into a defensive pose by his sides as if expecting the girl to attack him at any minute. The formerly over-powerful zoanthrope crossed her arms over her chest in disdain and both stationary figures glared at one another for what seemed like an eternity before he finally broke the silence. "…Who are you?"

"Who am I?" Uriko pointed at herself in emphasis to his question, but then directed her finger to the stranger as she fired back, "Who the heck are _you_? Alice didn't tell me that Yugo had a roommate…"

Light-shaded but fiery eyes glanced out from underneath the cotton-material protection and captured her gaze at the mention and the next questions were inquired with suspicion lying underneath the surface of his calm tone, "Who are you? And how do you know Yugo?"

"My name's Uriko and I know Yugo 'cause he's my sister's boyfriend; okay, now it's your turn, so tell me who you are already!" She shook her hips aggressively as she leaned forward to tap the unknown bystander on the tip of his nose; she was getting annoyed at being left in the dark and never knowing anything.

"Yugo is my older brother." He answered this matter-of-factly, as if she should have had that tidbit of information in her knowledge, then he turned away, black bangs swiveling out from the lid of the hood with his movement. "Uriko… I've heard that name before… You must be related to Alice."

Uriko nodded enthusiastically, a smile coming over her lips even as she confessed, "Yup, although not by blood… but that doesn't matter, because Alice is still my big sis and Mother and I both love her a lot!" Mentally she slapped herself, wondering why she was giving away so much information to a person she did not even know; even though he told her he was related to the wolf zoanthrope, she still was uninformed of his name.

"I…see." He remained still but his fists relaxed back into loose, dangling hands and he shifted a little her way so that he would not seem to be rude or hiding his face from her in cowardice and timidity.

_This guy's really quiet; he must be shy or something… _"Ya know what's weird? Alice told me that Yugo was an only child! That's why I thought you were his roommate or something, hehe." She giggled even as her mind wondered why her sister would lie about something so simple and was determined to question Alice about it later after they left the Ohgami house. "So… what's your name? How old are you? What school are you going to? Are you gonna be in third-year junior high like me this fall?"

The boy seemed a bit taken back by her boldness and his position staggered, his eyes revealing a hint of panic as he fumbled for a plausible response to her onslaught of rapidly-fired questions, unsure of which to answer first, "I-I'm, er… My… my name is…"

"Kenji! Hey, little brother, come here and say hi to Alice and her sister!" The call came from the living room and then a short pause ensued before he further continued with, "Err… speaking of which… Hey Ally, do you know where Uriko is? I thought she would still be here in the living room…"

"Uriko?" Alice inquired, raising her voice a bit to be hear in various rooms around the house, sounding a little worried. "Sister? Where did you wander off to? Oh, I hope you didn't go anywhere or do anything you're not supposed to; Aunt Mitsuko wouldn't be too happy if she knew you were snooping in someone else's house, Uriko!"

"Calm down, sis, I'm over here!" Uriko replied loudly, huffing a little in exasperation as she waved her arms high over her head to be seen despite the fact that she was a considerable distance away from her sister. "I'm right here! Next to the stairs, talking to… your name's Kenji, right?" She glanced at her companion questioningly.

Hearing his name, Kenji Ohgami lifted his head and nodded curtly at the girl, then cleared his throat and shyly averted his eyes as he gestured with his hand for her to follow him into the living room. She was bewildered by his quiet nature and wondered if he truly was as old as she thought him to be by first impression, but she shrugged it off for the time being and trailed after the walking boy. Uriko pursed her lips in curiosity as she stored numerous inquiries in her head that would be thrown at her older sibling later; but in all honesty, how in the world could Alice have missed mentioning that her boyfriend had a little brother? Just like her mother, the two older women often kept secrets from the youngest Nonomura and she scoffed at the thought, more than a little annoyed that they saw her as some kid unworthy of receiving such simple information.

When both teenage siblings had arrived to greet their counterparts, Yugo Ohgami beamed a wide grin of expectations toward his little brother and greeted them with a hearty laugh, "Heeey, there you are, wow, did you guys get acquainted already? Kenji, you move faster than I thought, haha!"

Seeming startled by the way that his eyes widened a bit, Kenji quickly gathered his composure together and shook his cloth-concealed head in denial, "I'm sorry to disappoint you, Yugo, but no, we don't know each other that well. We just met a few minutes ago. She ran into me while I was coming down the stairs."

"H-hey, that was an accident!" The auburn-haired teenager protested his blatant statement as she threw an apologetic look toward the owner of the house - what a way to make a first impression, by clumsily bumping into his younger brother! "I didn't do it on purpose, Alice, I swear, I was-I was just a little distracted, that's all!"

"Yo, it's all right Uriko, don't worry about it!" Yugo guffawed, clapping his sibling on the back before not-too-discreetly nudging him toward the younger girl, to which he received a slight noise of surprise and sudden nervousness. "Kenji's just a little too blunt sometimes, ain't that right, little brother?"

"I… I guess." He shrugged slightly, unsure of what to say and becoming a bit tense at being so close to Uriko, this girl that he hardly knew; he glanced at her and she returned a curious look, her head tilted to the side in silent regard, her bright eyes trying to figure him out. _…Why is she staring at me like that?_

All four stood silently for a while, the two older figures waiting for conversation to initiate between their younger siblings but the auburn-haired teenager only broke the tension to ask candidly, "…Sis, isn't it almost time for dinner? Shouldn't we be getting home soon before Mother is worried about us being away for so long?"

Alice gasped as her hand went up to briefly cover her mouth at the bluntness of the question and instantly felt ashamed about her sister showing such a rare rude side; she removed her own barrier before exclaiming, unable to conceal the shock in her voice, "Uriko! I can't believe-!"

Yugo flushed a bit as his girlfriend trailed off, unable to finish her sentence, and he scratched the side of his awkwardly while trying to shoot a discreet glare to his brother, wordlessly encouraging him to make the best of the situation and convince the girls to stay. The hooded student glanced away uneasily, not wanting to give into the silent demand; the nurse was kind-hearted and he liked her very much, enjoyed her visits probably almost as much as his brother did. But as for the younger sister, she was certainly a strange one and he could not detect her true person; that was in itself was alarming because he usually saw right through people and she had an invisible blockage of some sort. As if sensing his thoughts, Uriko caught his eyes and narrowed hers slightly, appearing to be annoyed at discovering his staring if her small scoff was any indication toward such a feeling.

"Sorry to leave, Yugo, but I have to go work on my summer project for Honors World History and get it done before school starts." Kenji apologized quickly after he shifted his position to avert himself from the watchful and vividly curious girl only months younger than himself, and then turned to bow slightly in the direction of his intended listener. "It was nice to see you again, Alice, please come back soon. And… err… it was nice meeting you, too… Uriko."

"Yeah, same here," the brown-haired student replied, although there was only a little bit of warmth and sincerity in her voice; she was concentrating more on digging underneath his cool, icy surface to see what he was like on the inside. _…Nope, there's no way around it, he's just really, truly weird._

Despite her cool message, he still nodded crisply at her in farewell and after giving Alice a brief smile, the mysterious youth left the living room and light padding footsteps could be heard as he bound up the stairs to retreat into his room. When he left completely, Uriko flushed a little, as if she had just realized she did something wrong, and then lowered her head as she slowly walked over to the door, opening it to leave, suddenly wanting to be outside very badly. Her older sister had a small frown on her face at the unexpected behavior but she decided not to comment until the two had privacy to talk, as she disliked the possibility of humiliating anyone and hurting their feelings. She turned to say good-bye to her boyfriend and found a partial pout on his lips; she giggled softly at his forlorn expression and wished that she could have indeed extended her brief visit to his home.

"Aww, I don't want you to go back home so soon, Alice…" Yugo stepped forward as he spoke and reached over to clasp both of his girlfriend's hands into his own, swinging the dual pairs through the air in a gentle, playful manner accompanied with a wry grin on his face.

"I know," she sighed a little regretfully and confessed, "I don't want to leave either, Yugo, but I guess Uriko's right about dinner, I just wish she had said it a little nicer… Um, I'm really sorry about what my little sister said earlier; I'm honestly shocked myself - she's not usually so… rude, like the way she acted back there…"

"Nah, it's okay Alice, don't worry about it," he assured her with a confirming shake of his head. "I know that Kenji isn't exactly friendly and doesn't always bring out the best in people, and knowing how your little sis is so open, she probably thought that he was shutting her off or something."

The nurse slowly nodded at this new insight, her crimson eyes filling with understanding and sympathy even though she had just finished a small tirade complaining about her sister's behavior, but she honestly did not consider the feelings of both parties, just focused on one side. "You're right, Yugo… Uriko _would_ very likelytake that as rejection and I guess she probably acted that way because she was hurt by Kenji's aloofness… but you know, still, she should try to understand that not everyone is a social butterfly like her."

"Yeah, I agree and all, but hell, when you get down to the facts – and don't tell her I said this by the way - but she's just a kid; they both are. They're more worried about school and friends and cute guys, or girls in Kenji's case, and they won't be thinking about this consideration and empathetic stuff for a while."

"You're being so nice to Uriko… thank you for that." Then, with a soft smile creasing her lips, Alice leaned toward her beau a little closer and inquired lightly, her tone gentle and teasing, "So… do you ever think about cute girls, Yugo?"

"Sure, all the time! Why do I think I always stay out so late after my boxing matches are over?" He grinned at her wolfishly, raising his arms quickly when she broke their physical contact and he deflected an effortless punch that came from his girlfriend as she tried her best to glare angrily at him.

"Hrmp, well, I see how it is! I don't seem to be too appreciated in this house… So then, if I'm not wanted here… I think that I'll just go outside and join my little sister, if you don't mind." Appearing and pretending to be indignant, the nurse turned around and headed for the door, grasping the knob just as her companion wrapped his strong arms about her waist and lifted the young woman up into the air. She squealed in pleasant surprise and enjoyed being swung in a couple circles before Yugo settled her back down onto the ground, keeping her tightly in his embrace as he gazed at her with an intense and serious expression. Alice could not help a small nervous gulp that squeaked its way down her throat; rarely was she able to recall a time that he had looked so solemn and when he spoke moments later, she knew that every word was true and earnest.

"Alice, we've known each other for almost five years and even though this romantic relationship is new, the one that's been running between us since we were seventeen isn't, so of course, I've only been thinking about and caring for you."

"Oh, Yugo… that's so… that's so sweet of you…" the dark-haired woman blushed at his honesty and rare display of raw feelings but her eyes never thought of leaving his for a second, only closed when the couple leaned forward and met each other in an emotional, lingering kiss.

Still standing outside, Uriko had gotten bored from waiting and her face was presently pressed against the window, looking in on her sister and her boyfriend, sighing happily at the romantic scene that unfolded before her. She squeaked in panic when they broke apart and fell back as Alice was reaching for the door again, then started pacing around impatiently in an attempt to resume normal actions for her colorful character. Moments later, the dreamy-eyed nurse finished hugging Yugo and left the house, trailing behind the younger girl slowly as she wistfully thought of her handsome Ohgami that had been so tender and compassionate to her from the very first, hectic day they met. She failed to notice the snickering that emitted from the teenager and kept brooding instead, her steps a little lighter as her solid dark blue tresses bounced in the air to the rhythm of her movement.

"…Hey Alice, how come you didn't tell me before that Yugo had a brother?" The ever-inquisitive Uriko broke the silence by asking; she knew it was probably an inappropriate time for such questioning but knowing that the curiosity was killing her felt a little more important in this particular instance.

"Well, Uriko," her older sister began softly, torn between wanting to tell her and feeling the need to respect Kenji's privacy, but she figured it would be best if her sibling knew to avoid a more disastrous situation like asking him herself when the two went back to school. "You see, Yugo _was_ born an only child… He just adopted Kenji a couple of years ago and he doesn't want to explain their situation to everyone, so he would rather people just think they are blood-related brothers instead of the adoption issue hanging over their heads."

"Kenji's adopted?" The thirteen-year-old looked surprised at that discovery and her expression turned soft, quiet sympathy. "I guess that explains why his personality is so different from Yugo's… I mean, Yugo's pretty nice and he's definitely cool, sis, but Kenji's the total opposite; I think that I'd get along with an Eskimo better because even someone like that would be warmer than him!"

"Uriko! Don't say things like that, it's rude!" Alice started to scold, but then remembered what her boyfriend had said about her sister's personality colliding with Kenji's chilly attitude and decided to kill the lecture, instead continuing by teasing her. "You better be careful with what you say, little sister; it'd be really ironic if he ended up being your boyfriend in the future!"

"What! Y-you'd better be kidding!" Uriko exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air in a flare of exasperation and slight panic flowered in her eyes at the sudden, unthinkable concept. "I'm not Kenji's type and he isn't mine! Did you see how he was looking at me earlier, Alice? I seriously think that he'd rather step on my head than date me!"

"Well, you just never know, Uriko dear…" she answered simply, smiling as she increased her pace and walked on ahead, hiding a furtive grin at the thought and wondering what reaction her boyfriend would have if she told him her somewhat-absurd prediction.

The auburn-haired teenager wrinkled her nose in obvious disbelief and kept oddly quiet as she tried to think of other events, such as school starting in less than a month, as well as more-applicable potential boyfriends during the rest of the way home.

*****

In present time, the escaping girl sighed heavily at the memory, wishing that she had visited Kenji at least once more before she learned he was gone, and she shook her head, dual feelings of sorrow and fury slamming into her heart in the same instance. At their younger ages, the two had immediately disregarded each other because of a bad first impression and she wished it had been different, but of course, it was too late now for regrets or desires to turn back and change past occurrences. Still, even aware of those circumstances, Uriko found herself wondering what kind of person the quiet and younger, yet eerily mature, Ohgami brother would have grown up to be, and if he had supported Yugo, would they both have survived to the present day? She ceased her memories with a firm shake of her head, not wanting sadness to drag her down when she was on an important mission but she still granted herself one last, long and thorough thought to finally close the subject in her mind.

_He'd be…seventeen, I think…if he were alive today, but… sigh… darn that stupid ZLF group for bringing everyone so much pain, hardships, death, and all that other horrible stuff! Poor Alice, poor Yugo, poor deceased, young Kenji… I sure hope the ZLF will pay for this someday; I wish that they would come crashing down hard and I especially wish that I will be there to watch their defeat, maybe even help bring it if Alice lets me join the resistance!_

Meanwhile, back at the cottage, while the female zoanthrope had been reminiscing and contemplative as she enjoyed darting down the path to the outside and toward her most desired goal, an ire-filled form began to stir…


	9. Avenging The Treachery

_Special thanks once again to Andrew Glasco for his help and ideas; you know, we really should collaborate on a fanfiction together._

**Chapter 9**

**Avenging The Treachery**

          Fortunately for the sleeping ninja, his body was trained in more areas than merely fighting and fast recovery included in the package, a trait that he had gained from his natural zoanthrope powers rather than forming them from will alone.  Unconsciousness induced by the pills kept him down and out for just under an hour instead of a several-times longer period that a normal human would have undoubtedly suffered if taken his place.  Hazy amber eyes blinked rapidly to focus on the temporarily blurry surroundings and the owner took a few seconds to gather his thoughts together before a deep anger overwhelmed all other initial emotions.  Uneasily rising to his feet, Bakuryu quickly checked himself over to see if the girl had done him crippling damage while he had been unwillingly slumbering but he tested his joints and was pleased – somewhat relieved as well though he would never admit it aloud – that he found nothing wrong.

          Knowing his condition was all right and almost fully up to par, he then turned his attention to the main room of the cottage, searching for his supposedly-helpless and weak prey, extremely eager to rip all current and future smiles away from her.  His fists curled until they formed tight balls, the knuckles blaring hot whiteness to demonstrate such ferocity of his thoughts and the assassin felt only slightly disappointed at the knowledge that she was gone.  But of course, he had presumed so, for there could be no other reason for Uriko to drug him unless she wanted to attempt another escape, though she forgot one vital fact and that was to make absolute certainty he would not follow her.  For that, he would show her mercy and not end her pathetic life with sadistic pain and torture, but the blasted, aggravating girl still needed to be punished for deceiving him and trying to run away from his imprisonment again.

A cruel, vicious snarl crawled onto his lips as he hissed to the empty vicinity with blatant arrogance, desperately wishing that there was some way for her to hear his words, "A fatal mistake on your part, little girl…  You should have killed me when you had the chance…"

          With that triumphant remark uttered, he rushed over to forcefully throw open the tall, wooden frame and it banged against the wall on the other side, inviting all outside creatures to enter the cabin as he darted out the door.  He was willingly oblivious as his mind occupied itself with hateful resentment fired only toward his accursed victim, and delicious thoughts of making her pay a harsh price surprisingly calmed his raging nerves down.  A miniscule part of him actually commended her for such cleverness of effectively using a simple tactic; he learned an important lesson from this experience and that was to never underestimate her from this moment onward.  The girl showed a severe lack of intelligence through her weak comebacks when the two had continuously bickered during the past several days but perhaps underneath that thick skull laid a mind almost as deceptive and manipulative as his own.

          _You are only making this mission all the more entertaining and evermore enjoyable for me, Uriko Nonomura…  I will especially savor the scrumptious triumph of breaking your spirit and shattering your disgusting smile._  The malicious Bakuryu grinned wryly, amused at the game she had unknowingly initiated and he wanted to play with her, oh yes, he truly found it delightful to participate in an event with someone that he would have no problem dominating.  That foolish zoanthrope child did not stand a chance in defeating him and she obviously knew so, which explained why she escaped instead of challenging him in hopes of gaining her freedom the hard but rightful way.  And then a unique idea came to him suddenly… his victim desired to have control over her own life, namely freedom, while he undoubtedly desired to own her; perhaps there was a way for them to decide on and settle everything in an all-or-nothing sort of situation.

          He took flight temporarily and grounded himself onto the sturdy branches of tall trees, taking the advantage of his high position to look down and glance around, avidly searching for the girl drowning out all other thoughts in his mind.  The traveling was easy and he merely battered away whatever leaves that were planted in his way; absolutely nothing would stop him from the chase except his target in plain, striking-distance view.  There were faint tracks lightly tainting the formerly smooth dirt-ridden paths and her carelessness greatly assisted his quest, giving him more opportunity to recapture her while the odds of her escape grew smaller.  Far off in the distance came a sudden, barely audible mewl of pain and his eyes immediately shot toward that direction to the slight side, lips curling back in a vengeful and victorious smile.

          _My dear little kitten has called out to her master…_ he laughed aloud, partially hoping that she would hear him and be infected with despair at the knowledge that he was approaching to take his frail prey back to where she belonged.  Easily adjusting to an increased pace, the ninja darted ahead toward his intended area, the wind ripping through the dark blue strands of his hair with a ferocious howl, struggling to keep up with his furious speed.  His breath came out in short puffs and although his default body temperature was warm, he purposefully emitted a barrier of icy indifference that allowed him to ignore the small pains and pricks from branches and other toys of nature that occasionally slapped his bared skin.  A formerly controlled steady-beating heart now pounded frantically in excited anxiety and apprehension from achieving a fleeting dream; for his eyes to rest upon the girl again was a delicious thought to be lingering over.

          Impatient from waiting to see her again, Bakuryu suddenly bent his knees and then sprang up forcefully, flying up and out over the treetops to sail through the air for a brief instant while he continued avidly looking around for his precious victim.  An open clearing a few hundred yards away held his prize and the young assassin chuckled lowly, pleased with his find as he descended agilely, stretching his arms to grab a hold of a thick branch for assistance.  He flipped in a smooth circle that allowed him to land upon other tan-colored look-alikes and kept running without pause, his formerly rigid posture loosening now that he was in better control of the situation.  That annoyingly giddy girl Uriko had no idea what he had in store for her; he wanted to see her pained and bleeding, but not dead as she still needed to be preserved in somewhat decent condition when it was time to turn her over to his master.

          The sadistic plans hovering in his mind gave Bakuryu a new push of lethal energy that he eagerly used to pursue his prey, a dangerous air inhabiting his aura from his own thoughts of cruel punishment that he excruciatingly desired to inflict.  After a period of carefully closing the gap between the skilled assassin and his victim, he urgently wanted to peek down at the forest paths in hopes of glimpsing the girl at a position that was a little closer this time.  Both of his arms thrust aside the branches and leaves blocking his view and there she was, a mediocre distance away from him, clearly delved into the role of her zoanthrope counterpart by running on all fours.  His eyes glowed unnaturally and he fought back the urge to call out to her and witness a horrified reaction; oh, when they were in intimate proximity of each other, he was going to have far too much fun shattering her optimistic and pathetically hopeful soul…

          Down on the dirt floor, Uriko was still dashing along candidly and dread suddenly decided to settle in her stomach, though she could not figure out why this feeling had come when escape was promised just ahead, not far off at all.  She glanced forward and saw sunlight peeking through the nature-given obstacles; the air inhaled into her sharp nose was crisp and fresh and the bag bouncing against her chest no longer made it difficult for her to breathe.  And yet even with those surrounding comforts, she still could not shake off the insight that she was in great danger and the girl wished that pessimistic, frightening thought would soon disappear but it persistently stayed.  Intuition screamed for her to look back behind her and she did so reluctantly, mewling a soft whimper when she spied a figure darting about in the trees, dancing around the branches while hovering over her head.

          _Oh no!  He's already awake?  No, I can't believe it!  H-he should have been knocked out for hours!  Oh, oh God, I really need to get away from that crazy… I have to keep going – I can't let him catch me again!_  The speedy cat zoanthrope moaned inwardly in slight distress; she should have guessed that his resistance toward nerve-impairing effects would be greater than that of an average person with normal immunity, in spite of her own past full-night slumbering experiences with the sleeping pills.  But never did she think he would only be unconscious for less than a single hour and she had to admit that those traits of his were quite intimidating, made the girl afraid of what other hidden abilities the killer possessed.  Now that he was up and about, surely he had come to not only bring her back to the cabin, but also get revenge for what she did to him earlier as if the barely-concealed eagerness combined with bloodlust in his eyes gave her any indication.

          This new unfortunate apprehension dominated her senses and the feline began to become a bit distracted and suddenly developed the fear of running into the numerous trunks that littered across the vast, suddenly maze-like area.  As long minutes passed by, she could almost feel him looming directly over her and the fear snatched control as she panted more actively and ran faster, caring less about the position of the potentially-dangerous surrounding trees.  It proved to be a vital mistake on her part as her injured shoulder slammed rather hard into a branch that was sticking far out from the side and she whimpered slightly, the force making her slow down unwillingly.  A harsh bark of a laugh rang behind her and a part of her was surprised he could even elicit such an emotion while the larger dominating side rapidly grew irritated with his new show of human attributes by mockery at her expense.

          Because she had not been keeping close track of his location, his initial attack came as a great, unpleasant surprise as the ninja leaped down from the branches toward the girl, hands poised to grab and sedate her.  Sometime during his intended fall, his fingers had mutated and grown to a larger size, gleaming claws elongating from former human nails, soon finished with the process and ready to slash and deal damage at command.  For most of his past encounters, Bakuryu had hardly ever felt the need to fully morph into his beast form and truthfully, he valued his ten pointed weapons even more than the benefits of his animal counterpart so he had gotten used to only partial and precise transformations.  A wild grin on his lips, he purposefully slammed into her back and simultaneously dug the sharp points in as deeply as he could, drawing sick pleasure from her loud yowl of pain that must have escaped from her with great reluctance.

          Uriko was forced to the ground, the bag thankfully cushioning the area from her chest to face and preventing further injury, though she still had the breath knocked out of her and that was uncomfortable as well.  Yet those were small concerns compared to the fire that erupted over her back from the unexpected strikes and she literally had to bite her lip from outright screaming aloud, not wanting to give the sadistic adversary more triumph.  Her claws immediately flew behind to scratch at his surprisingly human wrists and his harassed response admittedly gave her satisfaction but the smaller zoanthrope was unable to release his insistent, brutal puncture.  Tears formed in her eyes from natural body functions rather than urged by her own will and to counter the visible weakness, she sank her own points into his arms to manually yank the repulsive assaulter off of her.

          Her scratches were milder than his own potential but Bakuryu still felt pain, an unfamiliar concept to him considering he had so much more experience being on the side that gave it instead of receiving.  He growled at her resistance and removed one of his hands to ground his spread claws upon the paw closest to him, cackling when he heard her furious cry; he had mounted her firmly and there was absolutely no intention of leaving this position.  The girl froze when she felt a small trail of warm liquid running down her side and instantly fear overcame her emotions, as she wondered if he was trying to kill her - perhaps he did not wish to follow his master after all.  Afraid for her life, she ceased movement and instead concentrated on healing her wounds, drawing strength from her zoanthrope powers that allowed her to deplete injuries quicker than what natural rest and mere hospital treatment could bring.

          Pleased that her struggling had died, the dark-haired ninja laughed inwardly in preemptive victory and his eyes shone with unholy delight as he leaned down close to her, muttering softly, "Was it worth it, little kitten…?"

          The said feline hissed at him angrily but did not bother responding with other verbal cat cries; she needed to heal well enough to get him off but it might cost her time in beast form if she wanted full recovery.  She took a moment to glance up at the sweet sunlight and felt like crying for she was so close to home, yet escape was a fleeting thought that slowly but surely was starting to slip from her grasp.  But then again, if her goal was going to be unwillingly taken away by this cruel and resolute killer, then the least she could do was try to retaliate without just giving it up and submitting so easily to his wishes.  With that determination in mind, Uriko hesitantly decided to stop the beneficial power and wrenched her claws out of his grasp with a vicious tug, sank them into his arms, and then with great force threw him from her back, up over her head.

          Amused and unfazed by her action, Bakuryu merely curved his path enough to bound off the trunk of a nearby tree and landed easily onto the ground, a cruel grin upon his face as he slowly stalked towards her, dark pupils gleaming wickedly.  "Your pain has just begun, my dear…"

Uriko was thankful that he no longer rode her back but exhaustion from her multiple efforts had escalated after her successful throw and she could only hug the bag protectively to her chest while sliding along the ground.  Cold fright gripped her heart when she spied evil intentions in his eyes and the bruised half-beast continued backing away from him as rapidly as she could on her rear end, knowing full well that he could easily travel faster.  The icy smile on his face further reminded her of his former utterly-detached person and she was barely able to inhibit an aggravated scoff at him for developing human aspects when the time was so hectic and completely inappropriate.  The younger fighter mewed softly to herself, her widened red irises shining with a mixture of conflicting emotions and she squirmed uneasily when she felt hard bark coming into full contact with her spine.

He chuckled and approached her closer with each passing second, provoking her with tantalizing words as he strolled along almost casually, "No more than a rabbit cornered before a wolf… your struggles were in vain, but worry not, for your horrendous humiliation will end soon, Uriko Nonomura."

The sadistic fighter suddenly brandished his claws before his face, each separate length thick with her blood, and one long stroke of his tongue licked a bit of her red essence from a single silver knife while another mocking laugh ensued, much to her great disgust.  Uriko actually felt her stomach churn at the thought of her vitality feeding his sick hunger and she hissed at him from her grounded position, eyes glancing everywhere for a way out instead of choosing the option of defeat.  She noticed that he was walking straight toward her and showed little regard to his open sides; she found that a bit odd and suspicious but currently it was her only chance of escape and she had to take it.  With the bag strap lodged between her teeth once again, the feline hastily scrambled toward the side, failing to notice the ninja reaching into the folds of his gi and coming out with a shuriken that whipped through the air, aimed for her injured shoulder.

Two edges of the flying ninja star embedded themselves into the intended area, almost in the exact same spot where he had struck her with the same projectile several days ago and the pain was startlingly incredible.  Even as the fleeing cat faltered slightly, she still refused to stop for him and was determined only be brought to a full halt with her last fighting breath, though she hoped it would not resort to such severity.  Bakuryu followed her aimless wandering, unfazed by her attempt to escape right before his eyes, in fact gaining amusement from this display and he retrieved another shuriken, palming it to hide from her sight.  When he decided he had enough of her foolish antics, the cobalt-haired assassin threw the diminutive weapon, smirking when it lodged right into her path and caused the girl to stumble and trip.

Agonizingly slow, he retrieved another metallic star, speaking low and almost chuckling as he did so, stepping toward his stopped prey and murmuring softly, "Where shall this one land, my little kitten…?  Your legs, your arms, your delicate, lovely face…?  And yet, perhaps those dainty paws of yours deserve more punishment, still, for they assisted your attempted escape…"

          She turned to hiss venomously at him, and then continued prancing around to the back of trees, trying to avoid giving her chaser an easy, open shot as she was still grimacing slightly from the re-inflicted wound on her formerly-battered shoulder.  The agile cat slowed down after dancing for a few moments and turned back to focus hardened red eyes at the location Bakuryu had been standing in the last time she saw him; to her annoyance, he was gone from sight.  Panting a bit, she sat, leaning against the trunk behind her and took advantage of her short recovery time to reach over her shoulder and pull out the accursed ninja that had just added an additional scar to her tender skin.  Carefully holding the new weapon in her palm, Uriko glanced up and about; as she searched for her evasive opponent, the girl wondered how he was able to stay quiet so long and presumed he had a surprise attack planned for her.

          "Too slow."  His low, provocative voice was suddenly heard behind her and a second after those words were spoken, a vicious slash ripped rather deeply across her back, drawing a pained yowl and partial scream from the feline zoanthrope.  Her eyes became wet with tears but tried to retract them hastily, refusing to let the small drops shed and allow the possibility of being seen in such a weakened state by the same monster that had derived sick pleasure from drinking her injury-inflicted blood.  She decided then that the time to be passive had passed and she needed to counter his brutal movements, even if it meant he would punish her more should she lose this encounter and be forced back to go back to the cottage with him afterwards.  After dropping her bag to the floor, Uriko slowly stood up with the shuriken between two claws, avidly training her ears to listen for and detect the slightest noise so that she could quickly realize and pinpoint the position of the estranged ninja before he lashed out with yet another harsh reprisal.

He appeared in a branch above her, rustling the leaves as a taunt as he whispered enticingly, "I see you… my little kitten."  Just as the girl lifted her head in the direction of the voice, he had already disappeared and when he allocated himself to a tree out of her range of sight, she groaned silently and cursed his deceptive, obviously advantageous technique.  "But you cannot find me, correct…?"  Bakuryu continued provoking her, "Surely you do not wish for your pain to escalate until you perish from such raw brutality…?  Allow me to warn you that I have enjoyed the immense pleasure of playing the Reaper many times…"

          His last retort sounded remarkably close and the female fighter pivoted in a half-circle immediately, her armed paw flying with blinding speed as she succeeded in her tactic and fiercely ripped a lengthy line of blood along his cheek by use of his own weapon.  Stunned by the force of her unexpected blow, Bakuryu staggered back from his position, shock clearly aligning his face before he consciously wiped the emotion away, breathing raggedly as if trying to inhibit or control great fury.  The girl eased to the side, still clutching the pointy ninja star in case she had to slash him again to gain distance between the two duelers, though she doubted that he would underestimate her from this point forward.  His attempt at concealing the rage failed, the furious ninja shot her a violently deadly glare and his fists shook with efforts to maintain beside his quivering body as he disappeared once more, leaving a log behind in place of where he had stood.

His drifting voice then spoke once more, a humorless chuckle filled with volcanic ire preceding his words, "Uriko, listen and hear me well…  Death will be an unattainable release in addition to the pain that I will inflict upon your feeble, pathetic body…"

          With that began a barrage of shuriken, whizzing through the air faster than she could dodge though she saw each and every one of them coming, all ganging up and aimed to dig into her thankfully fur-covered flesh, but her body was unable to move as quickly as her eyes.  The frightened zoanthrope twisted this way and that to try and receive less damage, but when she was cut several times, that forced her to seek shelter and she ran underneath a tree to be shielded by its large, lush green leaves.  As Uriko took the time to catch her breath, she unfortunately looked down and took in the blood that heavily soaked her outfit, feeling the sudden urge to cry as if she had just felt the painful blows anew that forcefully stole her life vitality.  At that moment, Bakuryu teleported among the area over her head, more than ready to end this game; he tossed a flurry of four shurikens towards a small branch of nearby, and as anticipated, the force made the natural tan bark sway quite noticeably, then hoping to use it as a distraction, he leapt down, descending silently as death.

          Falling for the simple yet effective trick, Uriko noticed the noise above her far too late and as she looked up and realized her fate, she only had time to shield her face with her arms, wishing that she could have protected herself a lot better.  Determined to swat away the frail obstacle, Bakuryu violently backhanded at her guard before beginning to simply struggle to get his claws to her throat; in immediate response, she brought up her own paws to doggedly retaliate.  The half-beast scratched at his formerly-human hands furiously even as her flesh was practically being shredded and she turned away to avoid visibly witnessing the violence, but in doing so she exposed the side of her neck to naked air.  Taking advantage of her momentary weakness, he thrust one of his arms toward the vulnerable area, pinching the skin open ever-so-slightly between two of his sharp, silvery daggers to alert his presently resisting victim of her lethal predicament.

          "Move and you die."  He verbalized simply, just in case she had not noticed the shadow of death upon her and Uriko instantly froze at the realization, her arms desisting movement as well, her eyes staring blankly into the distance as her life force was contemplated to be taken away.  She swallowed hard from nervousness and her reflexive movement made his claws dig more into her skin; she grimaced from the discomfort, trying to remain as stationary as possible to avoid further injuring her own body.  A slow chuckle escaped his lips, and then leisurely grew into an insane cackle when silence was her response; he leaned in near her cheek and the tip of his nose grazed her smooth skin as he sniffed her lightly before drawing back toward her ear.  "Mmm, the smell of blood… and of an intoxicating, yet pure young female… very enticing…  No other scent can match the uniqueness of either one… and yet both arouse very different emotions, do you not agree, Uriko Nonomura…?"

          When she failed to give him a verbal reply, he continued drawling with liquid ease, "Little kitten… do you really want to escape from me so badly?  You believe me to be unfair and deaf to your protests, am I right?"  All she voiced was a timid mew, borrowed from her beast form as the transformation only allowed few other verbal sounds; the now-submissive girl trapped in his hold felt too right and he relished in the power being sucked out from his prey and pouring in to feed his own hunger.  The smirking ninja leaned closer to the side of her face, his midnight blue bangs brushing her skin and she inhibited a shiver at his unexpected tickle; he laughed heatedly, branding her with his invisible mark.  He aroused a small ray of hope within her when he started speaking again and proposed, "Well… perhaps you misjudged me… surely it must surprise you to learn that I can be negotiated with, Uriko Nonomura…"

          Though the weakening morphed girl desperately felt herself want to slump forward and revert back to human form and conserve the beast energy, she resolutely held the upright position and perked her ears, a little curious to hear what he had to say.


	10. The Devilish Offer

_Special thanks to Andrew Glasco for giving me lots of ideas for this chapter._

**Chapter 10**

**The Devilish Offer**

          Bakuryu noticed her fatigue and released the female cat abruptly, obviously uncaring of her person as he smirked when she fell face-first on the dirt floor; she yanked up her arms to protect her nose from being crushed at the sudden, unexpected drop.  Despite the twin cushion, the pointy-eared zoanthrope still moaned slightly at the new pain she received while her eyes filled with rare animosity and she carefully eased herself to a sitting position, inwardly wondering why he had decided to let her go.  He merely elicited a short laugh at her unwilling show of weakness and bent down to grasp both of her shoulders tightly, pulling the girl back toward him, keeping her close in case she was foolish enough to attempt yet another escape.  Finished with his amusement, he commanded acidly, "I want your full attention so revert back to your human form, little girl; you have no means of resistance now and you are merely wasting precious energy.  I would hate to have you fall asleep while we are hashing out the details of our little deal…"

          "Mrowl?"  She turned her head to glance at him, curiosity obvious in her expression but when he did not speak further, she complied with his demand and closed her eyes to concentrate on reversing the transformation to attain her human body.  The fur protecting her tender skin slowly disappeared from sight while the feline ears delved back to hide into her long brown hair and with the lack of the additional power when being in animal form, the girl was left frail and using most of her effort to stay upright.  Her hand rested supportively against her chest, scrunching up a fistful of the shirt material in the process; she was breathing raggedly, huffing out heavy sighs from the wind that now whipped violently across her newly bared flesh.  During her struggles, Bakuryu just looked down at her, a pleased smile creasing his lips at witnessing her powerless state but he wanted to crush her spirits even more with his next words so he made sure she was all right enough to be alert and fully attentive before speaking.

          "Young Uriko…  Upon your agreement to my generous offer, over the next few days, we will engage in combat on a maximum of three separate occasions - the first fighter to win two matches shall be deemed the victor.  Usage of our zoanthrope forms is forbidden; this is purely a test of physical hand-to-hand combat techniques, and we shall battle until one side submits and willingly forfeits to the other person."

          Uriko coughed hoarsely and held her aching forehead, barely listening to the ninja and upon noticing her daze, his deadly claws bit deeper into her skin, drawing a small gasp of pain from her, his subtle yet cruel warning to heed him seriously.  She winced from his usual harsh treatment but resisted the urge to try and move away from his aggravatingly arrogant, smirking face so close to her passive and contemplative one; goodness knew what he would do to her this time.  His heated and steady breath blew upon her cheek vibrantly, almost as if he was utterly delighted to see her discomfort and his grip tightened even more, ensuring that the girl would stay right where he wanted her to be.  Her muscles soon felt cramped by his hold but there was nothing she could do to grasp an actually comfortable position so she decided to stay still and wait for him to finish his apparently-important speech, though she was honestly surprised that he could even string several sentences together.

"And to the victor goes the spoils, correct?  If you manage to defeat me, little girl, you shall attain your freedom, take your leave of this place and I will not pursue you, accepting my fate as a part of the shame of defeat."

The girl jerked her head all of a sudden despite her ragged state, wanting to maintain her face turned away from him but she managed to whisper, loud enough for her defiance to be heard, "You lie…  Your word… can't be trusted…"

He chuckled slightly and replied directly into her ear, admiring the amount of resistance this prey was showing, yet he still relished in his obvious power over her, "So you say… and yet, it is the only hope you have, will you not admit the truth in that statement, Uriko Nonomura…?"

          "I… don't believe you."  She tried to shrug his hands off from her shoulders but of course, he held onto her tightly, refusing to relent to the wishes of a mere prey, though she felt relieved when the ninja turned his claws back into human hands to avoid scarring her worse.

          "Then what other options are you left with?"  Bakuryu questioned simply, his eyes glinting with wild, sadistic malice when he saw crimson liquid painted all over his fingers, sliding down to stain his palms as well and it was obviously **her** blood that he had drawn earlier…

Grumbling quietly to herself at his refusal, the girl finally decided to stay still, yet continued to voice her concerns, "Be stuck with you, I suppose, ya crazy…  Grrr, I'd be happier with death."  She felt his body tense up and quickly distracted him from that possible deadly train of thought, "And what is… what is the tarnished side of this supposedly golden coin…?  What would happen if I… if I lost…?"

Unknown to her, the stronger fighter nodded, pleased with her reaction; "Good, you seem to understand your predicament, Uriko Nonomura…" He was silent for a moment to allow that tidbit of information to fully sink in.  "Now, your end of the deal…  If you lose against me, little girl, then… you are mine.  You will belong to me, unconditionally."

          "What?!"  Uriko screeched in shock, and then, seeming if she no longer wished to be in such a trapped position, the younger youth forcefully and painfully wrenched out of his grasp, which he had loosened anyway upon the prediction that she would want to face him during a direly serious discussion.  She whirled around to confront him, still at his level since the girl stayed seated but at least she had gained a little distance between the two opposing forces as she spat, "Yours?  How dare you say something so horrible and impossible like that…!  Y-you're not God!"

          His next coolly spoken words sent chills down her spine.  "My dear cat girl, save your spite and do not waste your breath trying to convince me to accept your viewpoint.  All you need to acknowledge is that if you lose… I will be your God."

She was aghast but still managed to fire back passionately, "Holy Mackerel, I-I can't believe you're trying to rule other people's lives... as if you have the right to!   Tell me, what if I use my free will, like right now, and don't accept this evil deal with the Devil?"  Her direct and obviously resentful glare at him silently indicated that he was the said demon.

Bakuryu was unfazed by the non-verbal accusation; he had heard much worse from other unfortunate victims and would not allow this small female to affect his conscience or try to deter his path toward a successful mission.  "Then all hope is tarnished from your life and your fate is sealed.  Choose the path aside from the one I offered, and you will soon be delivered to my master and tortured in a fashion that makes this recent… engagement of ours… feeble, small, and seem like mere child's play.  If you prefer enduring pain and suffering for the rest of your life, I urge you to refuse partaking in this deal."

The amateur Kenpo student shook her head as she was in honest disbelief at what he implied underneath the surface of his carefully veiled emotions with this supposedly generous gesture.  "So if, _if_ I had accepted this crazy offer of yours…and lost…you would keep me as your own and betray your master to do it…?"

The ninja found his eyes narrowing at the forbidden, treacherous concept, not even realizing until this second that he had given her such an asinine idea; the thought was frightening yet laughable that he would defy his master for a mere weak girl… "That is not your concern..." he finally replied, though he himself was unsure of how he would truthfully answer her question.

"Why… why are you offering me this?"  Uriko asked soberly, and then looked away a bit as if she felt embarrassed about her curiosity.  "Are you just… just trying to make fun of my fighting even more…?  I mean, you must be really sure of your victory or you wouldn't ever have thought of giving me a choice like this that could lead to the possibility of me getting away from you…"

He scowled, unable to grasp a plausible excuse for his own inquiring mind that was presently screaming with rightful astonishment and he refused to give her a reason, feeling there was no need to explain his actions.  "…I will determine the time and the place for each battle, and all of them will be sudden, so do not expect any warnings beforehand.  However… I shall grant you the opportunity to heal and train between each encounter before I engage you again."

The brunette turned back and held his placid eyes with her emotion-swirling ones, her voice barely audible as she questioned reasonably, "How do I know… that you'll honor your side of the bargain if I win?  Honor, hah… do you even know what that word means... Bakuryu?"

A low chuckle escaped his lips; to his surprise, he discovered that he loved the sound of his full name being uttered from her lips, without a hint of her former mockery or annoyingly perky tone, in spite of the obvious scorn that she perhaps purposely failed to inhibit.  "Hrmp…  Unfortunately for you, I can offer no reassurances; the only hope you can grasp of attaining your precious dream is my word."  A short pause ensued before he continued with, "But you should surface and make your gratitude obvious, Uriko Nonomura… for I have never offered such a challenge before…"

"You…!"  Fire flaring out from her dark pupils, the former feline struggled to stand and slowly rose to her knees, then continued ascending until she was upright with her arms crossed before her chest in unconscious upper body support.  "You… you've never had someone with the same uniqueness as me before… I'll bet that's why you didn't give the others…a chance."

A small grin was her immediate reply; "Correct.  You are, indeed, a new breed to my eyes, as well as the first to receive any kind of mercy from me, so never complain again about how horrible and strenuous your situation is, for my past victims had far worse outcomes, little girl…"

"You… you're terrible… I just… I just can't believe that there really are such evil people out there like you.  Sis was right when she said that the ZLF was full of cruel monsters without hearts or any compassionate feelings toward other people."  She shivered from a sudden gust of wind that blew by and looked down, realizing her clothes were rather tattered… and far too much skin was exposed, possibly feeding the enjoyment of the perverted bathing-peeper standing before her.  Thankfully, the bottom half of her attire was practically undamaged but her back felt very chilled and she quickly moved to cover herself, yet even with her efforts, both of her shoulders were still left out there as well as the tender skin of her vulnerable throat, bared to his hungry eyes.  A brief glance at his face revealed that he **was** in fact staring, making her shudder with disgust at his blatant violation, overwhelmingly relieved that he did not make a single move to try and take… certain advantages of her current state.

Hating the unintentional yet somewhat exhibitionist look, she could not help asking to clarify, "What did you mean by... owning me...?  Like, making me a servant, forcing me to help you kill other people, being free to torment me everyday, what, what do you expect?"

          He grinned in slight amusement upon seeing her uncomfortable movements, secretly pleased that she had elicited such a question and unconsciously gave him an opening to dive in and cause her even greater discomfort with harsh reality.  "…If I am to win, I will own you.  You will be mine…mind and body…to do with as I wish. What I want from you… will depend upon the time and circumstance, but you must comply with my demands."

Although she wanted to shiver from the horrid thought, Uriko suppressed the urge and shook her head, determined to focus on acquiring the information she needed before she even considered agreeing to his insane offer.  "No, you're not… you're not answering my question…" her eyes stared intensely into his, desperation burning deep within them, "Tell me, what…physical…endurances would you put me through?"

Remaining stationary to carefully consider her words, Bakuryu mused to himself silently, watching her through partially-closed lids, thinking of the best way to respond with vagueness that could satisfy her inquiry so she would not want to question deeper.  He had to admit that mentally, she could hold her ground against him, as she had done so many times before with his attempts at breaking her down by spitting forth verbal insults and it was growing slightly, but surely harder for him to feed off of her fear.  However, other than that, she had not been given the chance to develop resistance in any other department, and certainly she lacked the power to of withstanding raw physical pain in the heat of battle as was proven in their few encounters so far.  After a few moments of silence, the sixteen-year-old leaned forward a bit expectantly, hoping that he would indeed answer her instead of shrinking back and concealing information as usual; what he had to say actually held great importance to her for once…

Finally, he chuckled and decided to release, "Any that I wish," - he eyed her evenly before continuing – "You may have self-concluded this, but I honestly do not take you for a fool, Uriko Nonomura… feeling so, I believe that you are fully capable of understanding the meaning after what I have just informed you."

"…No."  Horror filled her eyes at the comprehension and she shook her head furiously despite her injured body, stepped away from him with her hands held up as if that small defense could hold off whatever retaliation he wished to inflict upon her person.  "No, you can't do that…!  I'm not an object; I'm human, a person, with feelings!  I have a mind, independent will, thoughts, and you want to turn me into some kinda toy to play with?!  No!  You… you can't…  I-I won't let you do that!"

When the younger girl covered her face to hide earnest reactions from him, Bakuryu openly smirked, reveling in the flaring emotions caused by this new twist that he had inserted himself, and then he shrugged calmly in response to her cries as if she could see him.  "No one is forcing you to agree with my offer.  You can choose not to play my little game… but then you will merely become a toy for my master instead, which is a worse option for you, considering the overabundance of weakness and fragility that you have displayed so far, little girl…"

"I get to choose, you say…" she laughed bitterly and flung her arms into the air, a show of apparent frustration.  "My choice… what kind of a choice is this that you're giving me?!  What you're saying is a bunch of crap!  You're trying to make me decide between my freedom or living my life as a puppet for either you or your master's sick desires…?  Either way, I'd die…  You ZLF hound…!  You're such a huge jerk... and you're _sick_!"

A casual, almost normal smile curved his lips when he spied a glint coming from the tears that were slowly sliding down her smooth cheek; this was clearly the beginning of her breakdown and he thoroughly loved such a display of raw, distorted emotions.  "As I have stated before, your opinion of me matters little, Uriko Nonomura… and make no mistake, I could have taken you in the past, or even right now if I so desired – be grateful that I am giving you a choice."

Her head shot up and mahogany eyes drilled sharply into him as the girl raised a hand threateningly, then she took a step forward in emphasis to her next words that were seethed in an uncanny, almost dominant show of strength uttered from a petite figure.  "Oh, if you… if you dared try to, to 'take' me right now… I'll scratch your eyes out and sink my own claws into my neck to get away from you…!"

"What a pity."  He sounded bored and gave her a slight shrug in response, seeming not the least bit bothered by her bold proclamation while a strange fire burned in his bleak pupils, gleaming with sadistic madness that made her feel like shivering.  "Now I tire of your melodrama…  Tell me what you have decided."

She spat out her next statement with much disdain, "Your… your so-called 'generous offer'…  I can't, I can't decide now," there was actual plea in her voice as she choked on a sob.  "Either way, I could lose everything…  So then, you… if you want to play God, Bakuryu, you decide for me."  Uriko threw him a defiant glare as she continued, "Do ya want me to be your master's toy, or would you rather I fall prey to your own gross desires…?"  A heavy sigh broke free from her as she took a step back, thinking about how her life would be with a dangerous figure constantly behind her, watching carefully and breathing down her neck while reveling in the pleasure of controlling her every movement…

_Interesting turn of events.  _Bakuryu mused to himself, earnestly surprised that she had given up her power and returned it to the source, though he was also pleased that she seemed to start understanding her place and presumed it would not take long before he could control her completely.  For a second, he felt a strange twinge of unfamiliar guilt and almost wanted to reverse his offer, but then as a drop of liquid glided down his cheek, he was immediately reminded of the wound that his own prey had inflicted upon him.  She had resisted him so vigorously, that he was sure given the opportunity and right time, the girl had other concealed powers she left untapped that would be used against him, making the deal worthwhile and a true expression of both parties' fighting potential.  _I never thought this little girl would actually relinquish her choice by her own will, one of the many freedoms that she supposedly desires to the point of insanity and have caused such an overabundance of chaos and trouble for me these last several days._

"I guess it all comes down to… to whether or not you want me for your master, or… or you want me for yourself," the braided girl was unaware that her hands had moved to shield her body from his leering eyes; she felt so vulnerable and helpless, trapped in the spider's web, and she began crying openly, shameless of the action yet she emitted no sound.  _Losing my body, or losing my soul… oh gosh, I don't want to; I can't give up either one…!  Why, why do I have to be given this horrible so-called choice…??  Alice, my sister… Master Long, Jane, Mr. and Mrs. Gado, my other friends… I may never see any of you again...  No!  God, I can't live that kind of life…!_

His eyes narrowed slightly and his grin faded in spite of the pitiful plight being displayed - he could and would not, flat-out refused to betray his master, certainly having no desire to betray him for such a hateful little zoanthrope girl.  Yet… the ninja was admittedly confused; she stirred odd feelings in him everyday, especially when he watched her bathing at the lake, and it almost sparked an idea that he desired her.  But surely that concept was absurd, as no one could hold any control over him and dictate his movements due to his stubborn personality, especially not an inexperienced amateur that was only good for serving as one's toy to be subjected to entertaining manipulation.  So if he offered this with the intention of winning and thus being able to own Uriko, then he could give her to his master when he was bored and through provoking her; yes… that deemed reasonable for this somewhat unusual action of his, right?

It was time to voice, and therefore absolutely confirm the deal between them; he presumed that she would refuse even a friendly handshake so his words had to be enough and assure her that he seriously intended on following through with what he offered.  "…This is the decision I have made upon your request: you will accept my offer under the hope that I may perhaps be truthful and keep my word, despite whatever outcome results from our battles."

She hissed the word hatefully; "'Perhaps'…" – a slightly delirious laugh escaped – "You snake, I'll never trust you…!  Anything you do to me from this point on, I'll never be willing.  Ever!  I'll hate every action of yours with all the nerves in my body and when I win, I'll laugh in your face and spit on your downed body!  I'll… I'll… I'm gonna win, you'll see, and I'll do it for my sister and my friends…  I need them so much…  I can definitely do without you any day, but I can't survive without them in my life…" the female youth collapsed to her knees when she finished and her chest constricted painfully from her tensed muscles as she covered her face, allowing the harder sobs to shake her shoulders.

Bakuryu had to consciously remind himself that she was his enemy and he could not spare the teeniest bit of pity or sympathy; he was bewildered at his own sudden desire to comfort her after the strong show of emotions.  Instead, his reaction was to chuckle lightly, for once feeling no pleasure in tormenting her in this matter when he remarked nonchalantly, "Very well… if that is to be the end, then how you handle defeat is your own accord."

As the girl continued quivering in her seated position on the ground, the dark-haired assassin glanced away, uneasy with her blubbering as well as unsure of how he should treat her when she was so vulnerable to the point of breaking should he try and provoke her more.  Deciding to cut her a little slack considering he had punished her well enough for her treachery, he closed the distance between them, sliding his hands underneath her armpits to raise the lightweight female to her feet, and then placed his palms upon her shoulders with uncanny gentleness.  The fearful Uriko immediately shrunk away as if expecting a physical retort from him and struggled futilely, in spite of knowing full well that she stood no chance in breaking his hold if he truly insisted on keeping her imprisoned in his grasp.  When he grew tired of her hopeless resistance, Bakuryu forced his captive to look up at him, gripping her chin between his fingers as piercing flames licked out from his eyes to invisibly scar and preemptively mark her as his own.

"Come along now, Uriko Nonomura…  We shall return to our home."  He murmured softly, with just a sliver of command in his tone, overwhelmed with the sudden temptation to draw another passionate, fiery reaction from her by using a rather promiscuous action…

"No," she refused, and quickly finished before he thought she was trying to defy him again and so soon after she had just been put through hell by his hands, "I have… one more question I need to ask."

"Speak."  He permitted curtly, eager to return to the cabin so he could get on with the business that he had planned for the rest of the afternoon before the girl decided to get devious and kill a considerable amount of his limited time.

"What if… what if I don't keep my word…?  What would ya do if I run away from you, even if… even if I _do_ lose?"  Her inquiry was rather catty and the dominant figure wondered what exactly she implied, and so provocatively at that, almost daring him to show his true self when he lost his temper and reacted purely driven by emotion.

"Should you decide on taking such a foolish route, little girl… you will be punished far worse than today and afterwards, I shall deliver you to become my master's dog.  He, I can assure you, is less merciful than I am…"

"Ba… Bakuryu…" she hated the sound of his name on her lips; it made her want to burn her tongue off.  "Why haven't you killed me?  If I've been such a pain and you keep threatening to torture me, why won't you just give us both a break by ending my misery now…?"  Secretly, Uriko hoped that he would not take her words seriously but she _was_ sincerely curious and wanted to figure out why he had spared her so many times when she had undoubtedly caused him quite a few headaches and annoyance by the way that he constantly seemed to be inhibiting great fury.

He looked upon her form with a cloudy mixture of pity and scorn in his eyes and his lips tightened when he pressed them together to suppress showing any signs of the warring emotions within his head; however, his answer surprised even him when he confessed truthfully, "That… is not what I want."

Testing the waters but desperate to get the message across, the Kenpo learner carefully eased her body closer to him, leaning her face in and only stopping right before touching him, the tips of their noses grazing each other as she stared into his eyes intently.  "I know what you want… it's too disgusting to say and gross to think about, but I know… and no matter what you try, you're not getting it, you sick, cold-hearted, twisted…" she trailed off, repulsed at the mere thought.

The reserved assassin grinned slightly at her proclamations and did not move towards her nor pull away, simply looking back at her as he whispered, "You have no idea what I want, young Uriko… but if you indeed find out someday, it may come as a surprise, for you have not seemed to realize yet that you know nothing about me.  How I live is not to be judged by the likes of you, and allow yourself to become aware of the fact that should you lose two matches to me, you will have to adapt the same style.  Currently, you are already living a new way, under direly different circumstances than your shallow former days, so bid farewell to your childish past and accept the future that has been handed to you."

She grimaced visibly, turning her face to the side in hopes of avoiding the truth in his eyes; she refused to succumb to his claims and become a helpless puppet to be played with at his spontaneous whims and desires, yet nothing she could do would block out what he said next.

"My little kitten, this is your life now…"


	11. The Power Game

_As usual, big thanks to Andrew Glasco for his help.  Everyone, read his Vindictive Beasts Bloody Roar fic, damn it!  …Err, I mean, please?  ^.^_

**Chapter 11**

**The Power Game**

Sitting outside on her usual large rock and staring quietly at the afternoon setting, the auburn-haired youth breathed a heavy sigh as she raised a hand to absentmindedly run her fingers through her long tresses, combing the strands, an action spawned from peaceful boredom.  Surprisingly true to his word, the assassin had left his captive alone for the past three days and allowed her to heal; in fact, by the time she awoken each morning, he was already gone and she had the cottage all to herself.  Since she had been given leisure time to recover in preparation for certain upcoming battles, her body now no longer resembled a horrifying picture of brutality and her tender skin was slowly reverting back to their normal default tenderness.  The Kenpo student had also started practicing her fighting techniques as of late yesterday, but she still undoubtedly felt like an amateur compared to the higher level of skill displayed by the arrogant, yet admittedly superior ninja.

However, to give him a little credit, he had left her alone while she was training and that privilege alone brought her great relief, igniting an illusion of privacy, considering how he hovered over her so often, his ever-watchful eye on each of her actions when the two were in the same vicinity.  As a result, the amount of hours of solo period she received gave the girl much-needed breathing room, and she found it slightly easier to put up with his serpentine verbal remarks when darkness covered the sky, forcing her to finally return to the cabin at night.  The days presented little conflict, because she could practice former fighting skills to her own convenience and rest as well, if she felt suddenly winded and her past injuries happened to surface in reminder of yet another humiliating defeat from her estranged captor.  It had now been a full week since Uriko was kidnapped from the forest and brought to the cottage; she was unsure of how long it would take before her sister would get worried regarding the silence, but then the younger sibling recalled that the camp was supposed to last a fortnight.

A somewhat melancholic sigh breezed past her lips at the thought of having to put up with Bakuryu for at least another week before the possibility of a search party being formed to look for her missing person could take place.  The sixteen-year-old indeed found the days tolerant only because she was away from the deadly assassin, and yet when she returned to the cottage after sundown, that was when she immediately began to feel uncomfortable.  It was the nights that Uriko found more than just a little creepy… she still had not gotten used to bathing with someone watching, but the biting knowledge was, she unfortunately had to put up with that harsh reality until she was free, just considered it another test of her endurance.  Even more bewildering than that was the few strange looks that she had caught from her forced companion, and she could not tell what he was thinking, but it was probably along the lines of inflicting horrible and atrocious acts to her as usual.

"Sis… I miss you so much."  The petite brunette whispered forlornly, stretching out her arms to wrap around her knees and hug them to her chest in a protective gesture, in spite of the constant danger she encountered on a frequent basis from Bakuryu.  "You have _no_ idea how badly I wish I was back at home, with you, the other friendly faces of our friends, being surrounded by civilized people, and law enforcements… …and indoor showering too, of course."

          A gust of wind caught her braid and blew it upward, passing by her cheek to do so, ever chilling and emotionless, and Uriko quickly turned away, grimacing and feeling as though the hand of death had just marked her as the next victim in the lethal game.  She already had Bakuryu as a daily reminder that her life was in danger and did not like some invisible figure siding with him on this matter; it seemed as if many wanted to see his victory and witness her failure, such cold, cruel-hearted unseen spectators.  Scowling at the hidden entity, she aimlessly kicked a pebble with her shoe and continued to verbally vent her frustrations, her eyes focused on and never leaving the beautifully bright orange sky, keeping track of time and making sure she would depart before it got too late.  "Geez... out of all the people in the world I had to get stuck with, I got Mr. Gloom & Doom, Mr. I'm-The-Reaper-And-I-Totally-Love-This-Killer-Job…" she seemed to not have noticed the pun, "Sigh…  And not to mention his arrogant, smirking face, too!  Argh!  Sometimes I just wanna sock him in the nose…!"

A delicious sparkle ignited in her eyes at the thought, but it disappeared as instantaneously as it had appeared; the Kenpo student had to stick with the facts in this harsh reality, and striking her captor unexpectedly might cause her to take the blunt hit of a violent reprisal.  "But I-but I know I can't do that…  I don't ever wanna get hurt as badly as I did last time, again…  Ugh, Bakuryu's so bloody strong and he knows it, and loves to flaunt that in my face!  I hate it when he does that!"  Her voice lost its passion just then and dipped to a lower level, feeding her contemplative state; "And… and at night… he's always looking at me really funny, like he wants to… to do something really awful…and probably perverted…to me."

She shivered, hoping that her worst nightmare was indeed just that and would never become a reality, but his unreliability and unstable mood changes made anything a possibility, which brought her great apprehension in always wondering what his next move was.  "But at least he hasn't tried to sleep in the same bed with me yet…"

          This perplexed her more than anything else; she had presumed that after he thought to establish and cement his supposed superiority over her, the ninja would stop granting her the luxury of a private bed to herself and sleep aside her to cause her additional discomfort.  But for the past week, he continued to reside in his personal, special position against the wall, across the room from her slumbering form, his dark eyes always on her body and she had to turn her back to him in order to avoid those avid watchers.  Though she could not actually see her captor's face in that position, Uriko could practically feel him burning holes into her skin, staring so intensely as if she were some great spectacle, an unusual animal on display in a circus act, and she hated his silent, but obviously condescending gesture.  Falling asleep had never been so hard before and the girl wished she could take the same pills she used previously to render him unconscious, but feared that if he merely glimpsed them, he would become furious from recalling the memory.

          Temporarily discarding that thought, Uriko reached down and delicately picked a sunflower up from its dirt bed, bringing it close to her face to observe the dainty plant, feeling annoyed when her mind perceived her own person just as slender and weak.  The headstrong teenager grumbled inaudibly and began to pluck the pedals off as she willingly submitted to an age-old decision maker, which also could serve as a predictor of the future, muttering to herself, "I'm gonna get away… I'm gonna be stuck here…" on and on it went.

          Distracted by her self-created task, the female youth failed to notice a figure approaching from behind, hazy amber eyes watching her back carefully as tabi-covered feet walked over the grass, silent and furtive, true to the developed characteristics of the owner.  A partial smirk creased his lips as Bakuryu lowered his head a little, shaking it slightly to express the amused exasperation he felt toward his captive, his bodily stance casual for a rare occasion as opposed to the usual more rigid posture.  Blissfully ignorant, Uriko kept plucking the petals off of the flower, murmuring to herself all the while as he got closer, unaware of the fact that she was again being inspected, something she witnessed everyday and was considerably annoyed at.  His arms elevated to cross over his chest, intentionally emitting an aura of authority and arrogance while the ninja stopped mere inches away from the slender form before him, suppressing the urge to chuckle, wondering how long it would take before she woke up and finally noticed his presence. 

"I'm gonna get away… I'm gonna be stuck here… I'm gonna get away… I'm gonna be stuck here…  …Oh, stupid flower!"  The concentrating girl finished stripping the plant and when angry with the results, she flung the stem away over her shoulders, unknowing that it hit Bakuryu full in the chest before the pale green lightweight fluttered helplessly to the dirt floor.  "Grrr…  Argh, how I can't wait to leave this dumb place and that stupid, haughty ninja boy…!  He can take all that darned, arrogant nonsense of his and shove it up his nose!"

He chose that particular moment to speak and reveal his position to daunt her passion; "You seem just a tad disgruntled, little girl…  Hmm, I do wonder why…"__

_Oh yay, my darling, wonderful roommate has arrived…_ she thought, sarcasm coating each word in her mind as the girl jerked her chin to the side haughtily before replying, "I don't care what you think, so be quiet, you jerk… you're just an annoying bug – and not to mention perverted too, ick - on my shoulder that I just gotta brush off to get rid of."

His volume level was low enough to trick her into thinking that he was a considerable distance behind her instead of standing so closely, never considering that all he had to do was reach out his arms and he could wrap his hands around her susceptible neck…  "You have a surprisingly loud bark for one with such a weak bite, Uriko Nonomura…"

          "In case you couldn't tell from before, I'm a cat," she retorted, eyes flashing with annoyance at his constant presence, always seeming to be around her when she was enjoying the most privacy, as if he wanted to shatter her self-erected protective barrier.  "And your insults are so repetitive, you know that?"  She scoffed, "Come up with something new already."

          There was a twinge of irritation lodged in his next words and his eyes narrowed, evidently displeased with her continuous verbal barrage in an attempt to resist him in that department; "You are hardly in a position to talk down to me, little girl…  Perhaps you need a reminder of what happens when one spews forth words too loose and carelessly…?"

          The girl scowled aloud, but quickly covered that reaction by absentmindedly playing with her hair, avidly combing through the strands with her fingers to show him how little she cared about what he just said.  "I can say whatever I want; censor me with your ears if you don't like it.  …What're you doing out here anyway?  Don't you have some poor, innocent people to slaughter and other lives to ruin?"  She wished fiercely that for once, he would just respect her feelings and go away, leaving her alone…

          "You may find this calamitous to hear, but I am afraid that you are my sole agenda as of late."

She groaned inwardly, agitation enticing her expression while she fired at him blatantly, "Afraid, yeah right.  You enjoy buzzing around my ear, breathing down my back and torturing me with your ugly face everyday…"

He chuckled near-silently, a devious smile curving his lips, casting aside the insults she just shot at him, unfazed by her usual pathetic retorts; his pupils shone a mysterious light as he gradually leaned down toward her.  "Does my presence really disgust you so much, dear kitten…?"

"Do ya really have to ask?  You watch me everyday, after all; it's already been a long, torturous, endless week and I thought for sure that you'd be able to find that answer yourself by now…"  She inhibited the urge to shiver at his nickname and instead focused her eyes on the beautiful rays in the sky as the unoccupied hand drifted down and found its way to her lap to scrunch up a fistful of her shorts material.  This was the first sign admitting that she felt a bit nervous in acceptance of the knowledge that he was behind her, and the younger youth was grateful that he could not see her actions on the front side, or witness when she started chewing her lower lip gently.  Her heart increased its rate by pounding faster, forcing the girl to release her breath in shorter, shrill sessions, and she closed her eyes, forcing the apprehension to leave her body despite his dangerous close proximity threatening her life.

"...Is it that you truly believe your statement is obvious… or do you not know, perhaps made turned your own eyes purposely blind, and even failing to grasp the true answer to that question yourself, Uriko Nonomura?"

She remained oblivious to his movement, far too intent on watching the more pleasuring setting ahead than focusing on his words, thus disallowing his authority to sink into her mind and try to control her; she thought him to be too overconfident in his abilities.  "Stop playing games with me, you creep… I know what you're trying to do, and it isn't gonna work, so give it up already."

"Hmm, have my person all figured out, do you…?"  He closed the distance between the two opponents, craning his neck down and leaning his face down directly next to hers, just above her shoulder, feeling smug, yet somewhat disappointed in her character that she still had failed to notice his closeness.  From his position, he spied her treacherous fist tightly clutching her shorts as if she was drawing strength from the inanimate material; he chuckled in his mind at her foolishness, reveling in her futile attempt to hide timidity.  Grasping her forearms with his hands to make sure she would feel the full blunt of his next words and not escape the impact, he tipped his head to whisper hotly into her ear, breathing heatedly onto the sensitive skin.  "I am not so sure that you can truly realize my intentions, dear cat… beware of what you presume of me, for you should never judge a person that you know next to nothing about."

          "AHH!"  The girl shrieked in surprise, then tried to scramble away as quickly as possible, disgruntled when she discovered he had her trapped, but nevertheless, she struggled anyway, despite what he would retaliate to her resistance with.  The dark-haired ninja actually had to use some strength to hold her in place, and when her constant movement began to prick irritation into his cool emotions, he let her go all of a suddenly, causing his captive to lose her balance and fall off of the rock.  Too frantic with the momentum, Uriko landed rather forcefully, but thankfully it was on her rear end so she had cushion to protect that area; still, she looked up and glared acidly at the smirking adversary.  Finding only amusement in her deadly gaze, Bakuryu had to fight back the urge to laugh in delight and instead settled for a wider grin of smugness, permitting a shake of his head to further show his pleasure in such an unwillingly entertaining display.

"You **jerk**!"  She screeched from her downed position, her arms flailing about in the air for emphasis as the auburn-haired youth spat fire with her words and her eyes were filled with a rare ferocity that she herself was unaware of.  "Don't _do_ that!  And for your information, I know what kind of person you are, so trying to trick me isn't gonna do you any good!"

          He brushed off her insults as usual, keeping a casual emotionless expression as he replied, "Is that what you believe…?  Well, then… perhaps when our little game is over, you will finally be forced to glimpse reality and start to see situations through my eyes, Uriko Nonomura…"

"Not unless I kick your butt first, and win!"  Uriko shifted into a brief sitting position, tucking her legs underneath her knees in preparation to ascend to stand proudly before him, her voice never faltering as she threw a very insistent and confident proclamation at her captor.  "My Master always says that overconfidence leads to a lot of people's failures, and I'm sure you're one of those many stupid fighters, looking at where you come from and all!"

          A malicious spark glimmered in his bleak pupils for a second before vanishing from sight and then they returned to normal, revealing only a dark abyss that was endless in its depth; "Hmm, what great pleasure I shall derive from proving your 'Master' to be a poor liar, little girl…"

At those words, the Kenpo student instantly jumped to her feet and thrust herself forward at him, extending an arm to poke a finger into his chest considerably hard as she spoke passionately, almost causing the self-perceived invulnerable assassin to grimace a bit.  "Hey, don't you dare talk badly about my Master, you heartless ninja jerk!  You don't even know him, so hush up!  He can beat you in battle any day of the week if you two ever met!"

Carefully maintaining his reserved pose, he merely reached up and grabbed her hand, clasping her palm to his chest firmly, initiating a rather provocative advance, a partial smile gracing his lips when he spied her annoyed expression at his action.  She began to pull away as the ninja had presumed ahead of time, and he immediately lashed through the air to grasp her free arm, retracting to place it next to its partner, resting against the pounding rhythm of his steadily beating heart.  Uriko narrowed her eyes and peered at him, uncertainty lingering in her chocolate-shaded irises as she slowly tried to move back, tugging and fighting his hold, but of course, he did not relent, kept her imprisoned with a wide, visible smirk on his face.  "If his frail, pathetic amateur of a student is any indication… then it is safe to presume that your words are utterly powerless and empty, and your Master is no more than a cheap replica teaching to gain profit rather than holding the intention of truly training to make sure that his inferior acolytes rise to success in the fighting world."

With a ferocious yank, she ripped her hands out of his grasp, stepping back to put distance between them while hissing intensely, "Don't touch me…!  And for your information, the only reason why I'm not as good as him is because I didn't train as much, or as long as he did.  If I was given the choice and learned everything that he had to teach me, I'd definitely be a better fighter than you today!"

He chuckled softly before informing her slyly, "'Ifs' bear no meaning on reality, my little kitten…"

The younger youth placed her palms on her hips, thrusting her upper body forward rather aggressively, trying to prove that she was un-intimidated by his arrogance and could indeed overcome his self-established superiority.  "I'll be happy to give you a taste of reality: you're not as great as you think are, and I'll prove it to you!  I'm gonna train hard and beat you at your own game…"

"Your passion is foolishly misguided; truly a shameful waste of an attribute that could be a valuable allocation if developed correctly."  His statement was an interesting mixture of insult and compliment and the girl frowned her confusion, unsure of what he truly meant, wondering if he was implying that she should become more insistent, and considered the validity of his advice.  "Let us not dance around and willingly coat our own eyes blind - the fact of the matter is, according to my accurate count, you have already fallen at my feet three times, and our deal has not even begun yet, Uriko Nonomura…"

Her eyes narrowed despite the humiliation that suddenly flooded her senses at his reminder; he certainly was clever and perceptive, knowing which of her buttons to push but the more he exercised that ability, she was given the equal opportunity of developing resistance against it.  "Grrr… you caught me by surprise all those times!  And, and… I haven't exactly been keeping up with my training, which gave you that little edge too.  But I'll get my fighting techs back, just you watch, and when I do, I'll give you a good battle!  I'll surprise you, you'll see!"

Despite his captive stepping forward and boldly stabbing her finger at the tip of his nose while she was talking, Bakuryu made no countering move, merely stood his ground and waited for the emotion-driven female to cease speaking before he inputted his decisively final two cents.  "Then I shall look forward to this good show that you have promised me just now, and I sincerely hope that you mean every word you have just uttered, little girl, for thus far, I have been sorely disappointed too much…"

Uriko scowled at his pivoting back as Bakuryu began to turn; she was quickly growing tired of him constantly condescending her and hated the way that he treated her so disrespectfully when she spoke, as if her opinions were not as important as his.  "Urrrrrgh... You're so infuriating!"

"I would like to make it absolutely clear that you are the only person in this conversation that is the slightest bit concerned or interested in what is being elicited from your mouth," he provoked her; snickering at the previous remark that she had fired as an afterthought, he shook his head slightly and just continued walking away.

Unable to resist the urge, she bent down to pick up a pebble and flung it at his retreating figure, pleased to see the projectile prove true to her aim, as her succeeded intention outweighed the actual impact of the weak and flimsy small object.  "The only thing I don't understand is why you didn't just attack me when I was weakened so that you don't have to bother with the whole process and just score easy victories by using your usual cheap tactics!  You seem to think that no matter what, I'll lose anyway…  So… so why haven't you done anything yet?"

He stopped as the tiny rock hit his back, then turned and shot his prey a dark glare while retorting, "It truly is pathetic that you disillusion yourself and fail to acknowledge my use of pure skill to defeat my opponents, not these 'cheap tactics' that you would prefer to label it as.  You do not stand a chance against me, little girl, remember that… for I shall spare no mercy and defeat you at full strength, and hopefully you will then realize your futile struggle and finally submit to the helplessness and despair that will undoubtedly sink into your thick skull all the more when you lose."

A little unsettled by his words but refusing to let that show, Uriko armed herself with another small pebble before assuring both parties insistently, "You're not scaring me, I hope you know that, Bakuryu…  I've figured out your plans so I know what to expect; surprises won't work in your favor anymore, sorry."  Her curt apology was completely insincere, of course; succumbing to a surprising sudden urge, her free hand reached up and pulled down her eyelid as she stuck her tongue out at him in her favorite taunt, one she had used against many of her opponents when she was younger.

The ninja released a slight snort, unimpressed by her mocking gesture.  "Be patient, young Uriko…  All will fall into place in due time."  He again turned heel and started off, pausing briefly only to command, "Come with me.  We are returning to the cottage."

His captive rolled her eyes at his back but nevertheless obeyed; she dropped the rock and slowly strolled toward him, great reluctance weighing down on her shoulders as conflicting emotions dueled inside of her.  She hated obeying any of his demands, but it _was_ in fact growing late and dusk was quickly approaching, so even though she still preferred to depart at her own leisure, he might take her back by force if she had not followed willingly.  The girl was surprised that Bakuryu used more verbal threats than physical antics, and wondered just how well he would fight when their first match came up; would he be as good as he promised, or was he full of hot air?  One thing she had to admit that he was right about – it would indeed take time to find these answers, and annoyed with the thought of waiting for a battle that suited his own precious hours, she glared resentfully at him, furious flames in her normally kind and elation-filled eyes.

          Oh, if only her master had indeed taught her more than she currently knew, for at that very moment, the Kenpo student desperately wanted to fly through the air and deliver a forceful kick to Bakuryu's head, almost as much as she equally desired to attain her blessed freedom…


	12. Such Strange Feelings

_Special thanks to Andrew Glasco for giving me ideas with this chapter, and many others in this fic.  Also, whoever submits the 200th review gets to request a special scene of their choice in a future chapter as long as it's plausible and will fit the story._

**Chapter 12**

**Such Strange Feelings**

          "Mmmm…!"

          Stretching her arms high above her head, the reluctant resident of the secluded cottage accompanied that action with a hearty yawn, her belly full of dinner from two hours ago, leaving her more than ready for bed.  She set down a manga book that she had been leisurely reading for the past several days at its usual spot on the floor, next to the cot and her blue duffel bag before lazily looking about the room.  The teenage brunette was currently alone, and even though her mind naturally guessed the worst possibilities of pain and bloodshed, Uriko still could not help wondering where the ninja was at the present late hour.  The sudden soreness that surfaced in her muscles, presumably from practice earlier, alerted the owner that her body was eagerly awaiting sleep, desiring the chance to heal and become renewed for the next session planned on the following day.

          But before she could succumb to those wishes, the girl wanted to take her routine bath; sitting close by it, she shifted over to her bag and rummaged through it to locate her large towel and an outfit to change into.  To her surprise, most of her clothes were missing and the first possible perpetrator she thought of was the dark-haired ninja, yet failed to grasp a reason why he would want to hold such possessions of hers that were useless to him.  Throwing a quick glance around the room, Uriko released a shrill sigh mingled with irritation before resuming the searching, and she thankfully still ended up with enough supplies to get her through the bath for that night.  Still perplexed by her presumably-stolen items, she stood up slowly and headed toward the door, her scarce belongings tucked underneath one arm while her curious dark eyes continued searching the vicinity, hoping to find them prior to leaving.

          _Really weird…_ she worded silently, confusion etched upon her facial features as the slender youth opened the door and stepped out of the cottage, the small confinement an event of the past when she escaped into the large, winding forest.  Despite the reality of her situation, she felt twinges of freedom tugging at her emotions nonetheless, practically aiding the far-off fantasy of truly darting away from her captor that lingered in her mind everyday, hoping to be fulfilled eventually.  Walking down a familiar path candidly, Uriko inhaled sharply, breathing in the cool night air, feeling her muscles loosen slightly from the extraction of tension and a small smile tugged at her lips in true pleasure for once.  Such peacefulness seemed impossible in dark, intimidating surroundings, but she found it to be a unique rarity, lifting her head to glance up at the sky and embrace the entire view, even the shadowy clouds that cooperated with the overwhelming black shade dominating everything.

          After numerous moments passed by, the carefree youth caught a glimpse of the lake in her view, the shimmering surface aligning with the light glowing in her own eyes, silently inviting her to dip into the smooth water.  More than willing to oblige, Uriko grinned widely and burst into a hasty run, eager to arrive at the beautiful setting as soon as possible, her breaths increasing naturally as her long braid bounced against her back from the speedy motion.  The howling wind of the looming black night surrounded her curvy body, ironically creating an icy shield that served as protection from the wayward branches that stuck out from trees planted firmly into the earth.  Her eyes closed instinctively as the girl gave herself up to the blind sensation of sprinting, running alongside the promise of control over her own life, though tainting the mental image was hordes of blood, and whether it was hers or belonged to the deadly adversary could not be determined…

          While the playful Kenpo student was enjoying her illusionary bubble of freedom, the ninja had just swung the door open and stepped into the cabin, a rather thick bundle of brown paper underneath his arm.  Taking note of the peculiar silence, his eyes narrowed as he tried to locate the perky Uriko, stalking forward as he headed toward the cot first to set the wrapped package down onto the coarse mattress, presumably being given to his victim.  A slight growl of annoyance elicited from his lips at her disappearance, but when he shot a look at her unzipped bag, realizing the possibility that she had not attempted to escape again; she was probably just bathing at the lake.  Though he originally considered staying in the cabin to wait for her return, a stubborn part of him demanded to know where his frail, somewhat elusive prey was and he silently agreed to it, strolling back toward the entrance and ventured outside to locate the girl.

          The bleak lighting was his most treasured ally; Bakuryu grinned at the natural concealment as he leaped up to land atop a sturdy tree branch and journeyed using that elevated path, preferring the advantage of looking down and seeing everything to his content.  Even though the silent stalker already had a destination in mind, he still peered at the ground in hopes of glimpsing his captive, while annoyance flickered within him at her constant disappearance whenever he was gone.  Briefly, he contemplated the possibility of Uriko not being in the lake and wondered where else she could be; practicing was also plausible, as the first fight between the two was to be selected and initiated by the ninja and he would do so soon enough.  He knew from demonstration that she was foolish and irrational, but if she were out training at this time of night, he would develop a new perspective on her that bordered on considering his slightly younger victim to be partially insane.

          Determined to find the amateur martial artist, he gathered his strength together and urged his body to dash faster, suddenly desiring to find the answer to his somewhat farfetched hypothesis as soon as possible.  His surroundings quickly became a dark blue and he was unfazed by such triviality, seeing only one goal in his mind and concentrating all efforts to achieve it, and that same determined, precise attribute helped make Bakuryu the skilled assassin that he was at present day.  That blasted girl was far more difficult and tested his patience a tenfold times over the amount that his past victims had, which made her captor hope that she did indeed have some mysterious great use to his master and was truly worth all the trouble to contain.  The ninja found his lips curling back in disdain at the thought of wasted effort and shook his head briefly to discard it, placing full faith and trust in the one that had authority over him, who would someday lead the zoanthropes to victory and dominate the pathetic human world.

          Back at the serene setting, Uriko had quickly grown accustomed to the silence and privacy, proving her comfortable status by stripping herself bare before diving straight into the lake without a second thought, thrilled to finally be taking a bath alone for once.  The large towel and small bundle of clothes were left on her self-claimed rock, all the usual supplies there, except for a missing bottle of shampoo and conditioner combined because the owner was currently washing her hair, scrunchies on wrist like always.  She leisurely took her time, feeling no need to hurry given the current circumstances, stretching out the long tresses as she scrubbed them clean with her hands, allowing the thin brown strands to cascade down in a waterfall through her fingers.  The glimmering liquid surface shook with the new presences falling into the water, rippling the effects in a widening radius, creating circles around the young female that seemed to place her in an invisible spotlight, accentuating the smallest, most elusive of details.

          Proving her happiness with the release of a breathy sigh, the lone teenager slowly swam back to her special rock, replacing the plastic bottle in its original spot before she opened an oval-shaped case and pulled out the light-colored bar kept inside.  Soap in hand, she decided to stay in her current position and finish bathing rather soon after all, wanting to take advantage of the free time to sneak in a little casual playing since there had been no room for such funning around the fiery-eyed ninja.  Eliciting a scoff of exasperation at the thought of him, Uriko increased her scrubbing pace as she cleansed her body speedily; aided with the determination to attain the idea that helpfully planted itself into her head.  She was done not too long later, surprised that the process had been completed quicker than the nights before with the mindful pupils of the assassin that watched her lustfully, seeming to try drawing her very essence into his tainted black soul.

          "Whee!"  The cheerful girl squealed briefly as she turned to face the center of the lake and delved underneath the surface headfirst, unafraid of being soaked all over despite the popular belief amongst many people that cats hated getting wet.  Her eyelids swiftly closed down in reflex, protecting the small sensitive spheres inside while the owner of the pair enjoyed the cool liquid gliding over her face, chilling her nerves but also causing tensed muscles to forcibly relax.  The wide-spread bunch of her long brown hair flowed over and covered quite a distance, floating listlessly while maintaining a lightweight despite the wetness that was added on with each passing second.  Uriko playfully waded through the water for a bit before raising herself up enough to rest on her back, allowing her arms to wave without purpose and drift aimlessly alongside her body, triggering even more waves to ripple.

          To claim that Bakuryu was just a bit stunned by the sight that suddenly greeted his eyes lacked the full impact of a true statement; the second he peeked out from the branches and spotted his relaxing captive, his body did something strange and rare - it froze.  This in turn caused him to grind to an immediate stop, his heels digging hard into the bark to prevent his form from toppling forward since he was standing so closely to the edge for the widest-spread look over the view in front of him.  That Uriko he had tagged as his greatest irritation earlier was now a vision of forbidden beauty, lying on her back and seeming to have her eyes closed while taking a casual swim, obviously oblivious to her newly-arrived watcher.  The night did nothing to conceal her body; in fact, the moonlight shining down upon the girl was aided by the darkness to outline each and every curve of her slender form, including two particularly interesting half-spheres that made his neck crane forward subconsciously.

          Unabashed with the knowledge of being nude only apparently to nature and no one else, the young feline arose from her lying position a few minutes later, placing her feet firmly upon the wet dirt at the bottom to stand.  She briefly peered up at the sky and sighed softly; ironically grateful for such desolation and not wanting to leave the luxury so soon, she resumed swimming around once more, periodically jumping out of the water with certain perkiness in her chest.  Her arms slapped down hard upon the surface with each landing, causing liquid to splash about the place and she giggled enthusiastically even when it sprayed over her face, leaving glistening drops to cling on her thin, delicate eyelashes.  After being confined and verbally abused for so long, Uriko felt relieved and almost grateful that she was able to enjoy this rare opportunity, not wasting a single second thinking about the cold-hearted bastard who trapped her in the first place.

Her silent stalker watched from his hidden spot a short distance away, a little uneasy with the odd and foreign sensation that had aroused within him while a strange feeling stirred deep down from somewhere just below his abdomen.  He was gripped with the slightest, yet spontaneous urge to leap down into the lake and grab his suddenly-delectable captive, but quickly fought off that foolish notion before he had time to seriously consider it.  Vigorously, he shook his head and prevented the plot from forming in his mind, wondering where that uncanny idea had come from; carefully concealed behind the branches and leaves around him, there was little that could escape his sight, which gave him every advantage over her.  Bakuryu grudgingly admitted to himself that Uriko interested him vaguely, though he was unable to conceive a plausible reason for that, but why did he feel such a strong desire to stay and stare so blatantly at this…weak and foolish little girl?

For all his ranting, raving, and confident claims of being immovable, the ninja allowed his lips to part in a soft inhale of wonder even as he blinked; the formerly small feeling that had barely been given life within him grew more prominently now.  This startling and unwelcome knowledge prompted his teeth to grit from a mixture of anger and frustration, as he realized that if he was unable to control himself before his own whimpering victim, this great ignominy would undoubtedly taint his reputation.  Even with that thought in mind, his tongue slipped out almost unconsciously, licking his suddenly dry lips as he kept his eyes on her attentively, starting to find the sight of her body to be intoxicating, entrancing and forbidding him to look away.  Somehow, the cobalt-haired ninja managed to stay still instead of succumbing to a blatant physical reaction, surprise startling his dark pupils when the carefree Uriko ceased her swimming and walked toward the edge of dry land to presumably leave the lake.

Now he was presented with the sight of her fully exposed body, which jostled his nerves even more, and the assassin cursed her in his own mind for her ease, though he could not deny that he enjoyed viewing this rare show of attractive nudity.  The concept unfamiliar to him but nonetheless present, distinct lust filled his amber irises as he traced her every move, suddenly feeling angry with his supposedly-powerless prey, silently accusing Uriko of deliberately trying to provoke a reaction with her constant 'flaunting'.  Her happiness annoyed him as it always had in the past week and the mere fact that she naively believed herself to be alone was only further proof of her blissful ignorance; yet, in spite of his scorn, he neither retreated nor approached.  The ninja was disgusted with the sudden smile that had graced her lips and wanted nothing more in that moment than to stalk down and slap the grin off her face, with perhaps but one exception, to have her silky, naked skin writhing underneath his body…

          Indeed oblivious to the fact that she was being watched – although her naïveté was unintentional – the brunette strolled over to the area where her belongings were set and picked up the towel to rub her body dry.  Her expression was serene, suggesting her complete ease with the current situation and she emitted an overall aura of calmness as her attitude was low-key juxtaposed to her usually energetic and overly cheerful self.  As she was displaying all this, her captor took that as his cue to leave, wanting to get back to the cottage first and engage in a random mindless action just so she would think that he had been there during her bath instead of out staring at her supple figure like a lecher.  With quick movement, he teleported down to the ground, traveling by that way rather than using the trees because they caused more noise and now that Uriko was out, her attention could be keener and more focused than when she had been playing around.

After she finished the task, the girl set the dampened cotton cloth back onto the rock and loosely tied her hair up before lithely slipping into a long shirt that reached down to her knees, with mid-thigh length shorts underneath just for the sake of covering her lower body.  Bending to gather her items together, she wrapped them up using the clothes she had changed out of earlier and tucked the package under her arm, keeping the towel free so she could decrease the wetness of her auburn tresses that were currently still dripping.  Simultaneously walking and drying, Uriko rubbed more vigorously when the cottage appeared scornfully in her sight, deciding in that moment she would head for the cot and go to sleep shortly upon arrival, not wanting to deal with the daily round of arrogance.  She had just tasted relaxation and eased fun at the lake, comforted by the tranquility and freedom that she was granted from the ninja for an unknown reason, and yet what she enjoyed was a familiarity that stung her as a reminder of her life prior to the dreadful kidnapping.

          The young feline approached the door hesitantly; her hand just short of trembling as she timidly reached for the knob and pulled the wooden frame outward with a bit too much force that had formed from her nervousness.  It crashed loudly against the wall on the other side and she instantly flinched while the current sole inhabitant was startled by the sudden noise, lifting his head to discover the source and when his shady eyes rested on Uriko, he scowled quietly.  He was seated on the cot, legs crossed Indian style, with both arms bent in a right angle positioned at chest level, one of his hands closely beneath its partner while the higher had two fingers straight up rigidly in his trademark pose.  During her leisure and purposely time-consuming stroll back to the resented prison, he had been meditating, trying to calm his body down and relieve it of the strange sensations he experienced when watching his captive at the lake.

          Cattiness possessing her all of a sudden and feeling annoyed with his accusing glare, Uriko demanded the ninja just then, without even thinking of what consequences her words could bring, "Hey!  Get off of my bed, you thief!  I don't want you on there when I'm gonna sleep!"

          She was rewarded with his eyes narrowing and the pupils darkening in obvious disapproval of her bold declaration, his body losing its former tranquility by the noticeably tensing muscles as he gave her a seething hiss.  "You have no possessions here, especially when you yourself are viable to be property, and being acknowledged of that fact, I advise you to watch your tongue and pay attention to each word you seem to speak so carelessly, cat…"

          "…Whatever, Baky."  The girl answered and candidly shrugged off the issue as she headed for her blue-shaded bag to place all of items she had used for bathing inside, using her nickname for him that she knew her captor so despised with mischievous and undoubtedly not-too-noble intentions.  After such a pleasuring and entertaining experience, she felt little desire to bicker with him that night and inwardly prepared herself to deflect whatever aggravating comments he would presumably fire, like water off of a duck's back.  To her surprise, he chose not to comment on her attempt at annoying him and merely closed his eyes to try and resume his meditation, feeling a sudden need to soothe the growing fire in his body that had suddenly rekindled from seeing her again.  He refused to be brought back to the weakened state of confused, mixed emotions that he was unwillingly in before and vowed to never again feel so powerless and enticed by those foreign emotions in his body that he could not even hope to understand.

While the distance separating the two decreased with her movement toward him, the Kenpo student noticed the presence of a small bundle that was resting idly next to her captor and inquired, one finger pointed at it as further indication of her curiosity, "What's that thing?"

          "Put your nosiness to good use for once and seek your own answer, Uriko Nonomura."

          "Well, geez!"  She scoffed at him irritably, a frown marring her brows as she shook her head in disdain before edging toward the package and carefully breaking the seal to peer inside; a small gasp of surprise elicited out from her lips when she discovered what met her eyes.  "Hey, these are my clothes!" – a suspicious look and an accusing tone was then fired at the ninja - "…so you did take them!"

          Bakuryu opened his eyes for a brief moment to give her an even glance before closing them again and revealed, "Despite your lack of gratitude, little girl, I still feel somewhat compelled to inform you that I did indeed extract your clothing from your bag earlier while you were using the lavatory, so that I could have them washed.  Your outfits in that bag have all been cleaned."

          "…Oh."  Feeling a small twinge of shame for implying that he had stolen her clothes for malicious intentions, Uriko found herself speechless for a rare occasion, her mind desperately grasping for something to say just to fill the uncomfortable silence.  "Um… thanks, I guess…?"

          "My compliments to you, your sincerity is almost convincing."  He snorted slightly and after coming to the realization that her noisiness was too much of a distraction for him to earnestly meditate and attain peace of mind, the ninja reluctantly arose from the cot, cloudy eyes focusing intently on her form.

          Deciding to ignore that comment, she tilted her head to the side a bit and regarded him rather wearily when she noticed that he was blatantly staring at her, voicing her concern aloud, "…What the heck are you looking at?"

          He felt no shame in admitting the truth and stated baldly, "Your body."

          Ire instantly flooded her emotions and the girl shrieked indignantly, "What?!  God, you're so gross; quit staring at me!  Leave me outta your disgusting head and go find some hooker on the street if you're looking for a cheap floozy!"

"I am surveying the progress of your healing, you fool!"  He hissed at her, raising his voice in an anger that matched hers with the provocative assumption, allowing the rarity of the younger girl to witness his raw agitation and frustration, all ignited by her own doing.  What Bakuryu had just said to the feline was indeed true, although he conveniently failed to mention the other, less conscientious interest that his eyes had in her curvaceous form, her long shirt a bit too thin for his actively wandering imagination.  A curse was shouted in his mind at the ninja succumbing to such a pathetic prey and when that brief moment of weakness passed, he quickly regained his usually cool composure, carefully lacing his next words with utter bitterness.  "I find it truly intriguing how you perceive me to be so utterly lecherous, and yet you are the one who keeps interpreting everything as a promiscuous act, regardless of whether or not the intentions behind it are completely and thoroughly different."

He had her licked that time; Uriko threw up her hands in growing annoyance as well as silent surrender and she pushed him aside on her way to the bathroom, ignoring his unfazed chuckle and forced herself to be ignorant and blind to this most recent mockery.  When she reemerged a little later after finishing her nightly pre-slumbering duties, the girl shot him a look as she picked up her cleaned clothes and shoved the bunch into her bag so she could have her own desired space on the cot.  Bakuryu smirked at her back and shook his head slightly as his captive raised the covers and delved underneath them, snuggling into a comfortable sleeping position, her newly braided hair lying on the mattress behind her.  Deciding that now was a good time to play his card of power over her, the domineering ninja casually stepped up to the side of the bed and elevated one of his legs to descend the knee, causing a small dip in the smooth surface.

          "Be mindful of how much space you take up on that bed, little girl…" he murmured over her provocatively, his words silky and tantalizing, making the said female shiver a little and dig deeper into the comforter to escape his taunts.

Confused by his command but refusing to let it daunt her, Uriko retorted testily, "What'cha doing back there, sitting down to chat?  Aww, gee, you're so sweet Baky, but no thanks.  I'd rather go play with sharks."

A low snarl made itself heard by her sensitive hearing as he applied more pressure on the cot, leaning far over her blanket-covered form to bend down and whisper saucily into her ear, "You are horribly dense, Uriko Nonomura… not that I would have ever expected anything more from a giddy, air-headed teenage girl such as yourself.  Now move over."

          She bristled noticeably from his insult, yet felt more concerned with the latter part of what he just said and decided to pounce on that, "What the heck do you mean 'move over'?  I already said I don't want to talk to you, so go away and let me sleep!"

          "Despite your conceited belief that I would waste a portion of my resting hours talking to you, allow me to shatter that thought you find so repulsive and let you know that I am here to sleep, not submit to senseless babble," he spat at her triumphantly, glowering when he saw her body freeze immediately.

Uriko turned around slowly until she could see him, her eyes widened in horror as she carefully looked at his face, nervous at his close proximity but wanting to witness his seriousness when she asked softly to confirm, "Wh-what…?  Y-you're not gonna be against the wall…?"

Bakuryu grinned broadly, surprising the girl at his rather blatant show of emotions and then he leaned even closer to whisper huskily against her quivering lips, "Starting tonight, my little kitten, you will be sleeping with me."


	13. Catch The Fallen

_As usual, special thanks to Andrew Glasco for giving me ideas on this chapter._

**Chapter 13**

**Catch The Fallen**

          As expected, the female resident of the cabin was slightly unhappy about learning that piece of information by the way that her facial muscles twitched visibly, and she expressed her feelings so to her captive in a calm, collected manner.  "Say _what?!_  Y-you've gotta be kidding me!"

          The ninja unwillingly cringed at her rather loud volume, but his expression remained smirking as he stayed in his position hovering over her and patiently repeated himself, "You will be sleeping with me from this night forward.  Hmm, very curious how your animal counterpart is a feline, and yet you seem to have hearing problems at the most convenient times, Uriko Nonomura…"

          Her lips curled back in an uncharacteristically fierce scowl and yet a sliver of fear was evident in her eyes; "Y-you shut your darn mouth, ninja creep!  Y-you're not gonna sleep in the same bed as me!  I-I won't let you do that!"

          "I did not offer you a choice, little girl."  He stated flatly, deadly seriousness underlying his cool tone, and then his arms rose to linger closely to the girl's body, crooked in a ready position to carry out a physical demand at any instant if his mind willed it.  "Now, will you move aside, or do I need to push you?  …And then again, perhaps you would rather I slept atop you?"

          Uriko marred her attractive features by scrunching up her face scornfully at his mocking grin as she quickly ascended from lying down to sit on her rear end, her fist flying to pose stiffly before her chest, a small gesture of both protection and resistance.  "S-stay the heck away from me, Bakuryu!  I-I mean it!"

          Keeping his reserve, Bakuryu merely sent her an amused look before decisively moving toward her, starting to descend his lower body to the bed, all the while coolly smirking his indifference at her feelings on the issue.  With a shriek of protest, the determined prisoner immediately shot out both of her legs to drive the invader away, the twin hits landing in his abdomen and causing him to fly back a bit as he fell off the bed and onto the floor with a moderate thump.  Uriko maintained her defensive position, the tightly-clenched fist hovering before her upper body shaking just a little as she waited for the ninja to arise, cringing inwardly at the loud scowl that he snarled from his downed and forced seat.  The skilled assassin had a blank expression on his face as he gradually stood up and arose to his full height, intimidating his young captive with the visible tension in his rigid muscles and the overwhelming darkness that had inhabited his cloudy aura.

          Her dark-haired captor released a shrill noise of irritation and shook his head slightly before suddenly thrusting his arm out and snaring the elbow she had closest to him, yanking back forcefully so that the girl crashed into his chest.  When she recovered from the falter and raised her head to shoot him an angry look as well as a biting protest that had rose on her lips, the resistance died away the second that she spied furious flames burning within his devil-black pupils, roaring its malicious intensity.  Unable to hold it back, Uriko subconsciously elicited a small whimper of fear before jerking her chin to the side, trying to escape the danger of his fiercer glare, silently willing her heart to slow its frantic beating, also apprehensive in anticipation of a physical attack.  Her frightened and submissive reaction obviously thrilled the ruthless Bakuryu if the way that he openly sneered was any indication, triumph glinting in his eyes as he leaned over, stopping only when his lips grazed her ear to speak rather calmly, a teacher merely instructing his student of a valuable lesson.

"Must you take so long to understand simple concepts?  Let me remind you of a few important facts, Uriko Nonomura… this is not your cottage, and you may have conceived yourself to be a privileged guest, but in reality, you are a prisoner and you will be treated like so.  When locked in jail, perpetrators can be severely thrashed as punishment for disobeying their warden, so keep that information vivid in mind the next time you think of defying my order again.  It would be wise for your health to do as I say; I may not be able to kill you, little girl, but I can torture you as you have never imagined in your most vivid of nightmares…  Absolutely nothing, and I repeat, **nothing** in this vicinity belongs to you, except for what is in your bag, and that means, if I command it, you _will_ move aside and give me room to sleep on a bed that you have no claims on.  Have I made your situation crystal clear to you now, or are you anticipating making me repeat everything that I just told you sometime in the near future?"

          "L-let… let me go…" she squeaked pitifully, mildly tugging on her arm to free herself from his grasp, her face still turned away from her captor so he was unable to see her expression and confirm whether or not she had taken his words seriously.

          _"Answer me, now, Uriko Nonomura…"_

          His angry hiss convinced the disadvantaged girl to obey him and her eyes squeezed shut from the sudden pressure that he applied to her wrist, twisting it a bit to cause her more uneasy discomfort than actual pain.  "Okay, okay!  Yeah, I know, I heard, I understand, whatever you want me to say!  J-just let me go already…!  …Please!"

          Her begging was a new welcome side of her that he kept in mind to exploit later; for now, the victorious ninja yielded to her plea and released his captive, careless of her person as he sent her sprawling atop the bed.  "…Very well, I shall grant you that small wish since you asked so politely.  Now, heed my order and move over."

          With one hand resting against the wall behind her for balance and a worried frown marring her brows, Uriko asked rather timidly, "…Can you promise that you won't do anything to me while I'm sleeping and actually mean it?"

"I will not bother you," he assured, but continued almost sounding as if he were threatening her, "so long as you give me no reason to."

"Hey, if I remember correctly, you threatened to sleep on top of me; can ya blame me for being just a little worried about what kinda stuff could happen?"  His thoughtful prey deadpanned, all the while peering at the calm assassin, suspicious of what intentions laid beneath his carefully concealed thoughts, wishing she could predict his next action by using his eyes as a window, but he had those clouded and hazy as well.

"Sarcasm."  He defended himself quickly, curtly, beginning to feel irritated due to the fatigue that had slowly crawled into his muscles and was hassling his body for much-needed rest, occasionally distracting him from taking care of the situation at hand.  "Are you ready to finally settle down, little girl, or do we have to continue this long-overtime spat?"

          Grumbling softly under her breath, Uriko hastily grabbed the blanket and securely wrapped it around her form before scooting back, allowing the smug adversary to finally lay down in his own space to attain comfortable sleep.  As soon as his head landed into his side of the pillow, shady amber eyes flickered over to glance at her briefly while a small smirk grazed his lips, then the twin lids slid down to a close and his breathing began to sound smoother and relaxed, peaceful even.  His body language conveyed a completely different response, however; both arms rested stiffly straight and closely beside the quiet killer and his legs were in the same alignment, a position thought to be rather uncomfortable by many others.  The girl stared at him for a full moment, distrust clearly evident on her face, but when he made no sudden moves to surprise or harm her, she gradually descended on her back, carefully watching out for any signs of an attack, the dull ache in her arm a rather painful reminder.

          Now lying down, the suspicious and avidly aware youth turned so that she was facing the wall instead of a detestable sight and pulled the covers over her form, resting the edge just underneath her chin for absolute, modest concealment.  Just the mere knowledge and reality of Bakuryu so close nearby sent shivers running down her spine; all he had to do was reach across to her side, grab a hold of her neck and squeeze the life out of the slumbering and unaware teenager.  To add injury, her paranoid mind conjured up a horrific image of the dark-haired ninja hovering above her body as she slept, his hands not resembling that of a human, but rather twisted into the vicious claws that had caused her being so much damage before.  Urgently discarding the atrocious thought from mind, Uriko squeezed her eyes shut tightly and tried to will herself to sleep, finding that a hard task to accomplish when she was inwardly disturbed with gruesome scenarios that unfolded by will of a vivid imagination.

          It was going to be a long night…

*****

          "Hah!  Hai!  Hyah!"

          The Kenpo learner cried out her effort as she practiced, thrusting her fist forward in a swift punch, following it with her other arm, yanking back to elbow her would-be opponent forcefully in the nose.  A thin sheen of sweat shimmered on her forehead from her diligent training, a few of her moves truly efficient even though they were done a bit sloppy and she had no instructor to correct the little mistakes made.  After that, she started shuffling her feet around wildly, working on evasion using sidestepping, imagining her opponent right in front of her, sneering arrogantly as usual with the artificial taste of victory on his tongue.  With a hearty yell and a ferocious scowl on her face, Uriko kicked the invisible figure where she imagined his face was, and then she quickly flipped her body around, using her other leg to follow in a double strike.

          The determined girl did not seem to be aware of the fact that her attacks were misdirected and her movements were sloppy; she barely noticed with vague interest that her concentration was a bit off and her thoughts drifted a little wayward at times.  Although she felt just a smidgen of total percentage, her body was still fatigued from the lack of sleep the night before, as the feline zoanthrope had gotten only a few hours of rest, most of her energy consumed to pay close attention to the deadly form lying right behind her.  Since she suffered from the leftover exhaustion of yesterday, Uriko was a tad sluggish, taking certain tasks less seriously, like for instance, that present afternoon, the lengthy strands of her silky auburn hair hung down loosely, tied in two long ponytails instead of in its usual single braid.  The healthy, vivid gleam of excitement that usually shone brightly in her wide mahogany eyes was dulled today, but despite all these impairments that would bring a normal person down, she persistently vibrated with her happy exterior.

          Unknown to the enthusiastic teenager, the ninja was crouched on the branch of a small tree nearby, watching her avidly with his light-shaded eyes, taking note of her clumsy movement and reveling in the knowledge that her efforts would be wasted.  Despite his growing annoyance at her noisy battle cries, the otherwise silence surrounding him initiated a bit of contemplation as he pondered the seemingly-transparent, but actually quite mysterious, puzzle that was Uriko Nonomura…  Somehow, her name now meant more than just that of a face tagged along with the path to completing his mission, as a single question repeatedly plagued his mind, simple as a peck of dust, yet more complicated than the most frustrating of enigmas.  Why had he, the young ninja that had mastered the Kato arts at the tender age of fourteen, the proud and virtually untamed assassin, allowed this meek little prey to cross the bounds of his path and test his patience as she did numerous times?

When Uriko squealed in excitement just then from successfully completing three back-flips in a row without her position faltering at all, he frowned in annoyance at her constant jubilation but did nothing to quiet her.  This unfamiliar passiveness in him brought even more confusion when he realized it, as no one else had ever received such generous leniency and mercy from the headstrong killer until this peculiar girl had been assigned to his watchful duty.  Admittedly, he tolerated more from her than he had perhaps anyone in his recalled life, for if others struck such words at the great Bakuryu, they would soon pay by finding themselves lying in a pool of their own blood.  Yet with that memorable knowledge in mind, he still remained stationary when a sudden realization hit the brooding ninja - this young cat zoanthrope, she enticed him… physically, he would grudgingly admit to himself, though was it simply her shapely figure that intrigued him so greatly?

A frown fell upon the ninja's face as he pondered these thoughts, growing more than slightly frustrated at having so many questions and not a single answer to satisfy his curiosity regarding this female youth who so adamantly despised him.  Just then, his attention averted to Uriko because she made a pained noise at overshooting her lunge and tripped over her own two feet, falling to the floor on her face, meekly mewing when she sat up, holding the back of her hand against her nose.  A small twinge of sympathy threatened his cool emotionless expression at the helpless look in her eyes, but he instead released a rather forced small chuckle, killing the kind would-be gesture as he resolutely refused to go soft on the Kenpo student.  Such an undisciplined clumsy little girl like herself believed that she could actually defeat someone who had trained for many years in a complicated form of fighting while effectively and consistently using his ninjutsu skills to carry out countless missions?  Preposterous!

A shrill war cry burst free from her lips the second that his thought was exclaimed inwardly and the observer focused on Uriko once again, one brow rising in amusement when he spied her running up to a tree and began to climb it vigorously.  Using the branches as her stepping stones, she ascended to a position high enough for satisfactory, and after a few minutes of careful calculation, the courageous girl started sprinting forward, her feet flying over the thick protruding tan sticks.  Both arms were raised to shield her face from getting slapped as she darted along, her breathing coming out slow and easy, exhibiting a strange calmness that was uncharacteristic and contrasted her overly cheerful personality.  After their previous encounters, the younger youth had quickly realized that the ninja liked to use stealth to gain an edge over her and seemed to be particularly confident in the way that he hid from her in the trees, so she wanted to exploit and get rid of this advantage.

Bakuryu was very amused at her show and had to consciously catch himself from silently giving her a compliment on the cleverness of her observations, as well as applauding her for the initiative of exploring one of his effective tactics.  Though this was a tad impressive on her part and proved she had a certain level of intelligence, he still did not seriously consider his victim to be a threat – in fact, the bouts in this deal were merely for pastime and his entertainment.  His feeble victim seemed to be ignorant of the fact that she was fighting a hopeless battle and he had no problem with forcefully drilling that information into her head until she was depressed with the despair of reality.  But of course, he also desired to ensnare the young girl in his silky, delicately woven web; he wanted to claim Uriko as his own, view the helpless look in her defeated eyes when he could control her to his will, and then the only question that would matter was related to his loyalties.

Still feeding to the ninja's bewilderment, his master wanted this weak female brought back to headquarters for his experiments, where she would be tortured and tested upon like an animal constantly, quite possibly even until death…  Bakuryu had witnessed it before with other victims, but he did not have a single inclination as to what the eccentric doctor had in mind for this one – she had yet to show a single remarkable trait that would make her useful as a specimen.  Besides, the assassin truly saw no reason why he should give her up anytime soon; did he not deserve her as a reward for his efforts, to have his own personal trophy that he could personally provoke and prod of his will?  He grinned a bit at the delicious dark possibility, as he could think of no grander mantelpiece than this foolishly proud girl, Uriko Nonomura, and reveled in the knowledge that she would detest that kind of life and resist him to no end.

The cobalt-haired ninja watched her slender form with serpentine eyes, taking in every movement of the object of his attention, disappearing in a flash of smoke as he followed her silently, this time traveling on foot to casually stroll into her view.  He found it both intriguing and foolish that the girl truly believed she could win – the cold-hearted assassin thought that to be truly pitiful – but her expression upon losing the bouts would doubtlessly be a delightful sight.  The helpless and harsh realization of her plight were already singing to his sadistic ears more beautifully than the grandest of choirs and his rewards would be swift and fulfilling: the girl having no means or right to resist his touch was a thrilling thought.   Although he had to admit that Uriko had proven herself to be persistent and passionate toward her goals, those were the only accolades he would reluctantly grant her… and he would sooner choke on those generous compliments than recite them aloud.

Meanwhile, the mentioned training fighter was trying to make a far jump in-between the next tree from the one she had formerly stood upon, but she fell just short and shrieked her anticipation of a hard, damaging landing.  Her arms swung around frantically, intending to grip a hold of any sort to save her, and true to that persistence, her hands were able to suddenly grab a thick branch mere seconds later, leaving her body dangling helplessly in midair.  Uriko muttered a curse under her breath at her failed action, but then carefully considered the distance between her position and the trunk; determined to make it across, she leisurely started edging herself toward her goal, teeth gritted in effort.  Her palms were slightly strained from the pain of holding onto the nature-born lifesaver so tightly, and the sixteen-year-old youth was admittedly utterly afraid that she would end up falling eventually and further injure herself.

Walking on the ground, Bakuryu simply listened in the direction where her frustrated comments were coming from and kept proceeding toward the sounds, quickening his pace when he detected slight distress in her tone.  He was unaware as of yet to her full predicament, but when he emerged into a small clearing and after his eyes immediately located her airborne form, the ninja sighed and shook his head, disappointed that she had succumbed to her usual clumsiness.  Hanging from the branch with dread lodged in her throat, Uriko continued scooting over, moving a little too fast in her haste to attain safety that was just a few feet away and winced in pain at the stray pieces of wood pricking her tender skin from the sudden burst of speed.  Her captor neared her position and took in her situation with a critical glare, gradually following her as she inched along, wondering if she would indeed make the trek or not, honestly unsure if he wanted her to succeed or fail at this particular task.

          "…Idiot," he could not help murmuring aloud, keeping the insult at a low volume despite the fact he was completely aware of her acute hearting – but he realized that he rather wanted her to know him witnessing her current humiliation and smirked at the mean thought.  As the cold assassin expected, he spied her ears perking to attention at detecting his word and then the cat zoanthrope craned her neck to glance back, a surprised look in her eyes when she discovered that she had an observer.  She was startled and her grip briefly faltered, causing the nearly-helpless girl to squeak in fear, but she quickly gathered her composure together and re-focused her attention on holding the branch tightly, wishing fiercely that she would not fall in front of him.  He already had plenty to rag on her about and this new addition was certainly not a welcome one; Uriko shot him a look to express her negative feelings regarding his presence and he merely discarded the invisible blow with a casual shrug of indifference.

"You!  Argh, why you…!"  The girl screeched irritably, annoyance evident on her face as she scrunched it up in disdain at spotting her accursed kidnapper, especially aggravated by his smug and mocking expression, almost taunting her with his confidence.  She hastily turned around to face the trunk and resumed climbing over monkey-bar style, increasing her pace in a rush to reach safety before he started laughing at her failure to accomplish a simple task such as leaping across from one tree to the next.  Her hands quickly grabbed and released every few inches, but just then, her grip slipped slightly from the speed and she peered up as the hold eluded her completely and left her dangling in the air with only one arm preventing her body from plummeting.  Sensing danger approaching, Bakuryu took a few apprehensive steps forward, believing that she was unable to recover herself and knew that he would have to intervene and save his helpless victim if she happened to lose the other grasp and fell.

"Nngh…" with a groan of effort, Uriko lifted her arm back up and frantically grabbed the branch; she unfortunately found herself too strained to go at the same fast pace as before and growled lowly at the new disadvantage but continued on gradually.

Yet, when she heard the crunching of leaves that indicated Bakuryu had gotten closer, her pride took control, not wanting her arrogant captor to witness even more of her weaknesses so he could use them to torment her back in the cabin later that night.  Heavily exhaling her efforts, the persistent girl started moving hastily once again, using the majority of her energy to get to her destination rather than focus on clinging to the branch, an irrational move that proved to be rather foolish as time passed by.  This left her guard frail and caused her eventual downfall, for when a leaf drifted down into her eyes and itched them, Uriko released a shrill cry and instinctively letting her hand go to rub away the irritation, but unfortunately she had left her weakened arm hanging and that soon gave away.  Even though her sight was blurry and could not focus clearly, the girl knew she was falling and whimpered out loud, more concerned about what would happen to her body, wondering how hard it would hurt to hit the ground, deciding not to fret over the ninja seeing her failure.

The young man she deemed so detestable was in movement the instant he realized that her hands had slipped off of the branch; he dashed over to where he presumed she would inevitably land and leapt upward with his arms outstretched.  His aim thankfully proved perfectly precise as he grabbed her in his hold, then immediately firmed his grip to ensure that it would hold, unlike her weak one that had led to her doom, his mind inwardly comparing with her former hold.  He landed safely on the ground with Uriko a moment later, glancing at the lying girl after breathing a reflexive sigh, a relieved look in his amber irises at her safety as he felt surprisingly glad that he had assisted her in maintaining her body's healthy and well-being.  Cowering in his secure grasp was the saved youth with both of her hands covering her face in fearful anticipation of a brutal fall, but to her surprise, the landing was not painful at all, and instead she was in a rather tight embrace.

She slowly peeked out from between her fingertips and saw that she was still above the ground; gasping in surprise, Uriko removed her hands completely and glanced around, greatly started when she finally caught the eyes of her savior.  "Y-you…!!  B-Bakuryu…?  W-why did you help me?  Ugh… this is all your fault!  Darn it, you just had to show up, didn't you?  Grrr, you made me so nervous and caused me to fall, you jerk!"

          Patiently passive through her ranting and raving, the ninja did not even budge when she began to pound his chest with her fists, using extremely little force, as it was a simple act of frustration, rather than having the intention of actually hurting him.  An annoyed scowl formed over his expression during her harsh and fierce cries, but he silently admitted that her passion continued to impress him; she was direly so much more attractive with all that ferocity emitting from her being.  When Uriko fought adamantly with full belief in what she was trying to achieve, her eyes shone with the light of solid strength that usually was covered by an overabundance of elation he found distasteful and unnecessary.  Meanwhile, as he was enjoying this mature side of the brunette, his mind was persistently plagued with a question that refused to leave until he satisfied it with a satisfactory answer: he wanted to confirm that his desire for her was truly and purely only physical, and wondered also, how would she react to a kiss?

          _I must know…_ he submitted to his curiosity finally, and his grip on her legs tightened while his other hand quickly traveled up along the spine of the slender female, its hasty movement reaching the destination to hold the back of her head securely as he swooped down to press his lips against hers.


	14. Finding The Answer

_This has been said a billion times, but I still would like to thank Andrew Glasco for his help in giving me ideas for this chapter._

**Chapter 14**

**Finding The Answer**

          After living with the enigmatic assassin for the past week, Uriko had come to expect many sudden moves, from his spontaneous mood swings of polarized amusement and wild anger to the sliver of human emotions that he seemed to desperately try hiding at times.  But nothing could have prepared her for this; she thought he hated her, and surely he did, since the two fought so constantly with their heated insults flying back and forth, neither side willing to relinquish an established stronghold.  However, the shocked girl was presently stunned, never thinking that he would exhibit an actual positive feeling toward her, though naturally she would have felt disgusted regarding his action if she had been in her normal mindset.  Frozen in his arms, she stayed still, allowing the curious ninja to keep kissing her, and then he began slowly moving his mouth over hers, testing this new sensation that was foreign to him but not to the female due to her past experiences having boyfriends.

          On the other hand, Bakuryu admitted silently in his mind that he was not at all repulsed by the outcome; at least now he had one question answered and confirmed, that he was indeed physically attracted to her, but he insisted it did not move beyond.  It was a rather pleasuring sensation to have the girl securely in his arms, warmth emitting from her slender body, transferring over to bring him those same strange emotions as before when he had been watching her bathe at the lake.  His mind became confused with new inquiries but the dark-haired ninja shoved them aside for the time being, wanting to enjoy experiencing this kiss – briefly he noted that it was the first between the two of them as well - and make it last as long as he pleased.  He marveled at the feel of her lips, so soft underneath his pressuring pair, pushing against her for the best angle, and then they parted to allow his tongue to slide out as he was struck with the sudden desire to slip it inside her and taste his partner's moistness.

          When the ravished youth realized what he was trying to do, her body instantly lost its numbness and her arm came flying up to strike her unwanted partner and get his lips off of hers, literally slapping Bakuryu away from her.  His head jolted back from the force and an angry scowl immediately formed over his face when he acknowledged her attack, dangerous flames igniting in his eyes for further emphasis as she cringed and shielded herself from an expected painful reprisal.  Although his grip on her did tighten to prevent the captive from escaping, he did nothing else, and a few minutes later, Uriko hesitantly removed the self-made barriers to peer at him nervously, curious as to why she remained unharmed.  The chilling killer merely looked down at her, his black pupils emotionless and bleak, but at the very least, she did not detect malicious intent in them and that was a bit surprising, though she released a small shaky sigh to express her relief.

          Initially, the ninja had been overwhelmed with an urge to counter her blow, but he restrained himself from the pleasure, a bit startled to realize that he fully understood her reason behind the slap, and was almost impressed at the show of dignity.  His unwillingly-flushed cheek tingled with slight pain and that honestly aggravated him, yet he retained a reserved demeanor and continued to glare silently at the younger girl, smirking inwardly when she glanced away from intimidation.  This unique captive of his frequently amused Bakuryu with her fiery passion and he admitted to himself that if he had not been a person who kept consistent control, he would be just like her, spewing forth equally zealous emotions given the opportunity.  After a long awkward had passed between the two adversaries, Uriko slowly turned her head back, her gaze lingering about the forest area for several endless minutes before gradually lifting it up to timidly meet his burning light brown orbs.

          "You… um, what… why, why did you…?"  She stammered, unsure of how to finish her question and ask him what she truly wanted to know; besides, would he really even give her a straight answer, or the usual one that was twisted in dark mystery and only offered further confusion?

          His features hardened slightly at her exclamation as if he was displeased with what just came out of her mouth and annoyance was clearly in his expression as he bit back coldly, "Perhaps you were expecting a prince on a white horse, little girl?  I must apologize; I was unable to locate such an esteemed figure in the short amount of time allotted, so I suppose that you will unfortunately just have to settle for the second best, my precious, spoiled kitten."

"I-I didn't… I mean, I… argh…"  It was too distracting for the held girl to be so close to her captor; she could see his eyes in the near proximity, and they made her uncomfortable to the point that she turned away briskly, not wanting to see the fire of lingering passion that burned within them.  He was certainly no knight in shining armor, but still a rather impressive – and slightly intimidating – figure with his deep blue ninja gi, skintight as usual, the thin material clinging to every inch of his hard muscles while a white scarf was around his neck.  As its loose tail fluttered freely in-sync with the wind's movement, Uriko briefly wondered if her captor was aware of how easy it would be to grab a hold of that article and choke his air out, or even strangle him to submission by yanking with enough force.  Dark cobalt strands hovered right in front of his forehead, and they was so little distance between the two opposing forces that his tresses occasionally drifted over to the feline zoanthrope and tickled her cheek, almost causing her to giggle but she fought to remain serious.

"Trying to blame your failure on me, are you?  Tsk, tsk, how pitiful."  Bakuryu shook his head, feigning the emotion of disappointment, as if he felt ashamed for her, obviously making his prey seethe at being condescended and treated so lowly like she was his pet or someone not equal to his higher class status.  "You poor, helpless little girl… you were in that predicament just as I arrived, if I recall correctly, so your attempt at pinning the fault on me would be foolish, for it is far too easily contradictable – find stronger foundation before you initiate an argument next time."

His ever-so-calm attitude was greatly aggravating Uriko, especially considering her current humiliating position, and she fought back the only way she could grasp with such an overwhelming surge of emotions that suddenly shot through her veins.  "You, you spying creep!  Grrr, I heard you walking in, Bakuryu, so how do you explain that??  Just how long were you watching me, you dirty cheater?  Why the heck do you always have to come after me?  I'm training, darn it!  You're supposed to let me do that in private, or did you conveniently forget that?!"

          "Cease your senseless blubbering, Uriko Nonomura!"  He ordered crisply, his eyes narrowing in distaste.  "Have you forgotten your position already?  You have no right to demand anything of me, for you are my mouse, cat… and you will obey me, or suffer the consequences to your liking.  Whether or not I choose to watch you in my leisure time makes no difference in our current situation…"

          "It does to me," she insisted stubbornly, then tugged lightly on his scarf to force him to look her in the face as she lowered her tone, asking rather timidly, "Um, Bakuryu… can you tell me why you helped?  I mean, wouldn't you have rather seen me fall and break my leg or something horrible like that?"

          Curious indeed; his own mind was asking that same question, echoing it over many times, nagging until he came up with a simple answer: Bakuryu wanted a challenge from this girl and if she were to be injured, winning would be too easy.  He had full confidence in his skills nonetheless, and believed that no matter how hard she trained, she would never be able to beat him since the weaker fighter was far below his level and had barely held her own in their previous encounters.  Playing mind games with his pathetic victims was a familiar and direly enjoying concept to him, and surely picking at young Uriko's mental barrier would be gradual but ever-so-satisfying when he accomplished his feat.  But first, the ninja had to make her succumb physically before he would start digging at her mind, and that was the best explanation for why he initiated their deal, for when she belonged to him, all would be lost to the dainty feline and her world consumed in hopelessness.

          Despite the fact that she had made Bakuryu feel slightly uncomfortable because she forced him to look at her instead of vice versa, he still almost smiled at his ominous thought but resisted the urge and instead muttered, "…It may disappoint you to hear this, but I truly am not here to oversee your death, though you should know that by now.  Aside from that, the obvious fact remains: the more time you consume healing from your injuries, then the longer we must put off our little contest, and I am sure you would like to see the outcome of that very rapidly… do you not agree with me?"

          "I see… so that's your motivation," Uriko realized, quietly releasing an annoyed scowl as she released her hold on his alabaster scarf to press her hands together against her own chest, looking as if she was praying, her eyes shining brightly at him, never losing the light of hope in them.  "Geez, I seriously don't know why you wanna fight so badly all the darn time… and this stupid deal is even your own call!  I don't get any say in this crazy agreement!  I really don't know what you're waiting for, why you haven't already started our first fight yet and all…"

          He scowled openly but a maliciously provocative glint flickered in his dark pupils and a partial smirk grazed his lips as he raised his arms, bringing the lightweight female up close to his face, breathing his next words directly upon her tender skin.  "You are obviously not ready or prepared enough, little girl, and yet, you seem peculiarly eager to begin our duel…"

          "Y-you're still holding me…  P-put me down now, Bakuryu…"  This new intimate proximity made the zoanthrope youth direly uneasy and she squirmed in his grasp, suddenly desperate to be down at the ground and standing on her own two feet instead of allowing her captor so much power over the current situation.

          When she lifted a hand to press it against his cheek, trying to turn his accusing, hungrily-devouring eyes away, the placid killer resisted the movement, pushing against her palm to once again seize control of their present dilemma.  "I will win, make no mistake about that…  So, what will you do, Uriko Nonomura, when your best simply is not good enough to achieve the dream that you seem to desire to death…?  Shatter your feeble little fantasies, my precious kitten, and accept that your life is in my hands… now and forever."

          The Kenpo student grumbled aloud in irritation, both hating and fearing the possible truth in his statement, stubbornly insisting with hot defiance, "No!  I'm not gonna lose to you, Bakuryu!  I'll fight you to the death if I have to, so stop trying your stupid mind tricks on me, 'cause I can tell you for sure that they're not working one bit!  Now let me down already!"

In a rare reveal of his true emotions, Bakuryu grinned as he whispered one last time, firing the definitive words directly into her ear, "You are merely a mouse traveling in a maze without an exit, Uriko Nonomura…  No matter how much time you consume wandering aimlessly, you are mine at the end of the day.  Fight me, girl, I welcome it; all challenges will be met and answered.  But bear in mind that I never lose, so my way is consistently victorious, foolish cat…  You will always be mine."

His ammo delivered, he graciously placed the auburn-haired youth down upon the ground instead of dropping her, not to be nice, but simply because he wanted the depth and severity of what he just said to stick in her mind.  Back on her feet, her stance faltered slightly when her knees buckled a little and she grimaced openly as she hastily stumbled away from the heartless predator; apparently, Uriko was a bit stunned with the powerful confidence exhibited in his statement.  He chuckled lowly and pivoted to start walking away while the girl shook her head to clear out the negative thoughts, shooting a glare at his retreating form when she regained her senses, relieved to be free of his poisonous influence.  Because he could not see her, she allowed a small shiver to tingle through her slender body at the memory of his heated fiery eyes locked onto hers, hating his nonverbal insistence that he would emerge the winner when their deal ended.

          _Ugh, he's so twisted… what a sick mind…_ she thought angrily; _sheesh, this guy doesn't know anything about human nature except that darn possessive side of his…!  Geez…  Well, that's all the more reason for me not to give into him!  _Caught up in her inward assault, Uriko was earnestly unaware that she had murmured aloud, "That creep, after I beat him up, I so hope he'll fall down somewhere and hit his head really hard…!"

Hearing her ominous curse toward his person, the ninja stopped all of a sudden, a cold grin plastered upon his face as he turned slowly to face the young female, hiding the annoyance that was lightly bubbling within him.  He was pleased with the outcome of their brief encounter and had been willing to walk away without further confrontation, yet she made a mistake by insulting him in this manner, and that aggravated him since it seemed like she had totally disregarded his generosity.  Bakuryu now felt unsatisfied with the overall events and sought to invoke a stronger reaction from his victim, still finding entertaining amusement in taunting the girl as he gradually stalked toward her, absorbing the strength of fear that shimmered briefly in her eyes.  She eased back uncertainly, feeding his sadistic power, and with an arrogant smirk, he suddenly vanished, a tan log replacing the space he had previously occupied, then reappeared behind Uriko and clutched her shoulders tightly to prevent escape.

"Very well, you will be graciously granted this wish since I feel quite generous today, little girl.  I shall appease your eager request of engaging in battle with me," she felt his muscles ripple behind her when he laughed softly, "Shall we begin?"

The amateur fighter whirled around and splayed her hands over his chest, firmly shoving him away from her position, then raised a fist before her face while her other arm reared back, ready to go on the offense at will.  "S-sure, let's go!  I-I can take you on anytime, Bakuryu…"

The pushed assassin went with the momentum of her action, falling easily into a swift backflip and landed gracefully on his feet, steeling his features before continuing to slowly stalk towards his opponent, malicious intent stiffening his body.  Uriko carefully edged around him in a circle, her slightly frightened eyes alert and ears perked up to detect each and every sound he made while the girl silently hoped he would not use the one stealthy move that always dodged her defense.  She detested his teleportation ability and wished that she knew of a way to counter, but for now, if he executed it, she would just have to deal with holding a stronger guard and rely on her own evasion techniques to prevent severe disadvantages.  Sensing her unease, he increased his pace, forcing his prey to step back faster as well to match his speed, and he had to confess inwardly that he found it a tad impressive that she was able to make her fright of him and at the light of the situation so discreet.

"M-make your move…" the sixteen-year-old goaded softly, crooking her fingers at him as she beckoned in a voiceless invitation, simultaneously deeply concentrating on being completely aware of whatever move he would make next.  Unfortunately and to her disappointment, he ignored the taunting statement, casually shrugging it off as the ninja simply kept walking towards Uriko, trying to either back her off or provoke her into initiating their fight by inputting the first attack.  She grimaced slightly and shifted her stance, crouching into a lower position while thinking, _well, here goes… the first battle already… oh, what if he's right and I'm really not ready?  G-geez, I'm nervous… but, but I have to win!  I can't let this jerk get what he wants!_  Grudgingly accepting the responsibility of setting the bar in the current round, the girl suddenly rushed forward without warning, her fist clumsily outstretched to strike a blow, praying that her speed was enough to carry her intention through.

Unfazed by her move, Bakuryu stepped aside easily and curved his fingers before his face, morphing the lengths into pointed claws, though he, oddly, was still able to keep most of his hand human; he provoked her tauntingly with, "Mmm… how I adore this sensation.  I can still feel the warmth of your blood upon my claws and inhale the scent of your life's precious vitality, little kitten… my next aim is to have your crimson drops soaking my tongue."

Uriko felt her stomach lurch in disgust, and her face scrunched up in a blatant cringe as she fired back, "Y-you sicko!  Ugh, d-don't say stuff like that, it's so gross!"  A sudden thought enlightened the girl and she ceased retreating, eyeing the malicious assassin suspiciously, awaiting an attack, wondering why he was so hesitant… it made her think he was trying to get her so anxious that her battling abilities would be impaired.  But then again, she recalled the guidelines he had laid out regarding their deal and… "Hey, wait a minute… y-you're not supposed to morph; you said yourself that was a part of our agreement, Bakuryu!"

          "Good, so you **are** conscious of the rules," was his casual reply as the ninja nodded slightly in approval and straightened up, fully returning his hand to the default form, ridding of the sharp claws that brought his poor victim nightmares of striking her to death with them.  He allowed a partial grin to crease the corner of his lips as he took in her expression; the younger youth appeared determined, but anxious, and she had to be aware of the obvious fact that there was no chance she could beat him in her current state, yet still, he knew she would not submit.  In a different situation, Bakuryu might even have admired her for it, if he had not been so completely concentrated upon his own superiority, though he was somewhat willing to admit that the intense look in her dark-colored eyes possessed a captivating glimmer, not unlike that of her damp body glistening in the moonlight.  Shaking the thought away before he became weakened by it, the assassin was suddenly gone again, but this time he reappeared right before his feline prey and looked straight at her, his gaze so hungry that it seemed he was trying to peer directly into her soul.

His eyes stared hypnotically into her deep mahogany pools as he whispered enticingly, his breath falling upon her lips at their close distance, "Do not waste your efforts, Uriko Nonomura, for this is not one of our battles, no…"

"Wh-what…?"  The aforementioned girl shifted back uncomfortably, coughing as if the air he was exhaling contained poison, then she glanced at him hesitantly, uncertainty evident on her facial features as she wondered if he was toying with her mind or being earnestly serious this time.

Apparently, honesty was his only intention in their current situation; Bakuryu shook his head slowly in silent confirmation, and then turned away abruptly, his back to her face as he started walking again to leave the feline zoanthrope alone to her thoughts.  When he was completely gone from her sight, Uriko breathed a sigh of relief, the tension leaving her formerly stiff muscles as she could finally be at ease without her mysterious captor present, though she stared in his direction even minutes after his departure.  A strange sense of familiarity had struck her when he gazed into her eyes, picking and prying at her being, seeming as if he wanted to strip the teenage brunette to the very core and fiddle around with her from the inside, change her person to his own liking.  She shivered at the thought and hugged herself with a false sense of comfort, wishing again that she was home safe and sound, and a considerable distance from this hauntingly beautiful forest that ironically contained hellish nightmares.

Although Uriko would never admit it aloud, she felt more confused than ever…

*****

          Later that evening, the exhausted Kenpo student fell blissfully into deep slumber almost as soon as her head had hit the pillow while Bakuryu was still awake, thinking the hour to be rather early, considering he usually slept around midnight.  He took the time to meditate, finding it a bit annoying that because Uriko distracted him so much when they were in the same vicinity, he had to resort to physically leaving the cottage and staying away from her during the day to attain peace of mind.  Seated in his usual position and taking up a spot next to the thankfully quiet girl, he closed his eyes, concentrating on gathering his energy together and keeping it close at hand while simultaneously opening his senses to be fully alert and aware of the surroundings.  He honestly preferred being in this state more than any other, even deeming it a tenfold better compared to the success of finishing a mission and pleasing his master, as the feeling of absolute calmness and having complete control outweighed everything else.

          He glanced over at her now, quietly viewing the serene expression on her face, almost succumbing to the sudden urge of reaching his hand over to run it along her cheek, wanting to find out if her skin was as smooth and silky as it looked.  In that same instant, her lips parted to elicit a sleepy sigh, sounding so pouty and irresistibly adorable that he found the sound to be strangely desirable, yet a frown marred his brows when he realized his odd reaction to such a simple, meek action.  While the dark-haired ninja was fully aware of the fact that he found her physically attractive, it had to end there and could not proceed any further, as he utterly refused to allow a mere, weak, little amateur girl to tempt him or try shattering his firm resolve.  Bakuryu confidently knew that he undoubtedly had all the power in their situation and would not relinquish it anytime soon, especially to a figure with a status so much lower than his own, even alluring and innocently enticing as she happened to be.

          Wandering amber eyes casually drifted down her body, and although the blanket was securely tucked around Uriko, he could still see the generous curves that made her slender form so provocative, and he admitted to himself the sight was definitely not an unpleasant one.  Unconsciously, his tongue protruded from between his lips to wet the suddenly dry pair, as his gaze unabashedly traveled lower, taking an intrigued note of the twin mounds rising and falling along with the peaceful breathing rhythm of her chest.  He had seen them fully bared when she was bathing nude in the lake, but to have that same scenario unravel while being this close to his face was an interesting concept to play with, and yet the hardcore dedicated part of his mind scolded him for thinking of foolish uselessness.  Turning his head away with effort, the slightly bewildered ninja willed himself to instead focus on devising battle techniques especially for his bouts against the weaker victim, not wanting to use his full force to overwhelm her unless absolutely necessary, though he doubted it.

          The first fight in their deal would soon begin, as his captive was obviously feeling better, her body voluptuous and looking practically untouched as the day he had found and kidnapped her; knowing that, Bakuryu could not wait for to battle the feline zoanthrope, and witness the light of hope die in her eyes when she lost.


	15. The First Match

_Super grateful thanks to Andrew Glasco for his help especially in this chapter; I think I suck at fighting scenes but his assistance got me through it considerably easier.  ^.^0_

**Chapter 15**

**The First Match**

          It was in the late afternoon of the day after her humiliating fall and his surprisingly virtuous save that the beginning of their deal finally started: a nonchalant Uriko casually strolled along a forestry path, pleased with her overall progress thus far.  Comforted by the warm rays of the dim sunlight, she wanted to stop by the cabin first before venturing over to the lake and taking her usual bath, early as it was compared to other times, so she walked leisurely to enjoy the breeze as well as the serene settings surrounding her.  She allowed her senses to be less critically aware and failed to notice the ninja crouched in a tree overhead just a few feet away from her current position, eyeing the female teenager carefully as he sought to thoroughly shock her with a sudden appearance.  He had waited long enough for her to recover from injuries inflicted countless sunsets ago, and firmly intended for their little game to start today, resolutely refusing to allow his prey the mercy of leaving without giving him what he wanted.

          Unintentionally oblivious, the girl hummed softly, barely noticing when the assassin appeared right in front of her, causing a rather abrupt stop of movement, a partial smug smirk on his face as he murmured, "Not so fast, little girl…"

Startled, Uriko stepped back and raised a fist for defense in reflex, but when she realized the identity of the newcomer, she merely rolled her eyes to show carelessness before eliciting an irritated growl as she tried to shove past him, "Geez, bug me later, will you, I've got something to do…"

His expression turning deadly serious, Bakuryu instantly shot out a lean arm to grab the feline zoanthrope's opposite shoulder and doggedly prevent her from going by him; "The time has arrived for our overdue first battle to take place, Uriko Nonomura.  Surely you are prepared?"

The said girl pushed his hand away, but remained still to turn her face and glanced at her captor, uncertainty lingering in her eyes as well as a sliver of fear that dwelled discreetly within the concealing dark shades of her chocolate-colored irises.  "You mean, we're gonna fight right now…?"

The cobalt-haired ninja granted her a crisp nod before suddenly shifting into a stance unfamiliar to her, back-flipping smoothly and landing with his arms poised almost casually for battle as an intense glimmer sparkled in his bleak pupils.  "It has already begun.  Prepare yourself."

Uriko admitted to being a little frightened inside, though she stubbornly put on a mean face and coyly beckoned her opponent over with a flick of her wrist, while simultaneously thinking frantically, _oh, gosh… the first battle…_ _I-I hope I'm ready for this…_

He grinned just a tad at seeing her exaggerated expression, but then quickly locked his mind, not allowing it to stray from the fight; with that determination, the reserved killer began to slowly stalk towards the younger youth, intending to intimidate her with slow, deliberate steps.  She was visibly tense and eyed him carefully, hoping silently that Bakuryu would initiate their fight by dealing the first strike so she could gain a small advantage of knowing what to counter it with, since he had many others at his disposal.  Unfortunately for the sixteen-year-old, she honestly doubted the arrogant adversary was going to grant her any leniency whatsoever by the way that he remained surprisingly passive even as he kept walking forward, a smirk threatening to graze his lips at witnessing her timidity.  His dark grey scarf drifted lazily behind his back with the motion of the wind as the young man progressed, an interesting contrast to his matching, but paler-shaded ninja gi, so light that it appeared practically pure white to bystanders that cared little about detail.

Her pride saved Uriko from revealing that fear was gnawing on her nerves and she scowled ferociously, going so far as baring her teeth in a catlike gesture as she persistently refused to let him scare her and voiced quietly, "C-Come on, make your move, Bakuryu…"

A cruel glimmer found its way into his eyes as he suddenly sidestepped, only meaning to psyche her out with the sudden movement, and he almost laughed when she reacted by moving in the opposite direction with her arms out to parry an attack that never came, satisfying himself with a short chuckle instead.  "Yes… this will be so very entertaining, Uriko Nonomura…"

"S-stop jabbering and fight already, you creep!"  Her volume was rather loud compared to his softer-spoken words and filled with ignited indignation as the girl turned her head slightly to glance at Bakuryu out of the corner of her eye, a sign of catty disrespect that she hoped he would notice and take as an insult.  "I-I'm ready for you anytime!"

He indeed seemed to be a bit irritated by her action and his posture became a little stiffer, the muscles of his bared front arm visibly tensing even while he muttered icily, "Very well, I shall be generous and allow you that small pleasure, little girl…"

Without warning, the skilled ninja dashed towards her, his eyes trained intently upon her form, and then he ducked low when nearing her position, quickly lashing out at her feet with one hand, meaning to make his opponent lose her balance and topple to the ground.  Even Uriko had to admit that his speed was incredible and she indeed started to fall forward, but thankfully right over his body and she used the momentum to her advantage, grabbing his arms and forcefully yanking them under her flying legs.  She flipped forward rather awkwardly just to land shakily to the dirt floor on her rear, and yet the girl was grateful that she had not succumbed to a worse outcome like smashing her face or getting downed on her back this early in the fight.  Unfazed by her escape however, merely deeming it as a lucky evasion due to her obvious lower skills, Bakuryu hastily whirled around and kicked at the small concave aligned with her spine, a rather furious blow to such a delicate area.

The force of his attack knocked her to the ground face-first and she groaned slightly from the discomforting feeling, but then immediately hoisted herself back up to a standing position to return the kick at his stomach, furious speed aiding her quest.  Unfortunately for Uriko, the ninja's well-trained reflexes allowed him just enough time to lift a knee and defend the blow; she shot him an annoyed look and tried again, using her other leg as she spun around in a full, albeit shaky circle.  A partial smirk on his face, he easily evaded the attempt and whirled after she landed, leaping into the air as he completed his 360-turn, his foot flying toward her rapidly with the malicious and merciless intention of smashing her right in the cheek.  The girl shrieked in terror and her head pivoted in anticipation, but somehow, her body luckily managed to drop suddenly, presumably from instinct, while her hands shot out grab to one of his descending ankles, pulling it hard to make him fall.

The simple offense worked wonders, causing Bakuryu to land painfully hard on the back of his head, and with a loud groan of pain, both of his arms reached up in commanded reflex to cup the injury with open palms as he desperately rolled away from his opponent.  Her heart pounding furiously at the close call, the younger fighter hastily rose to her feet and elevated her fists to shield her upper body, knowing full well that the ninja was very likely annoyed that her antic had succeeded, and would probably even punish her for it.  True to her conjecture, aggravation was clearly evident on his expression as he climbed to one knee and glared acidly at the slightly timid Uriko, pain etched upon his face while a corresponding furious fire burned in his ironically light-shaded irises.  The emotionless assassin stood slowly, lowering his entities of comfort from the head level during the time that he consumed, and then his hands clenched into tight balls as he suddenly rushed in once more, this time leaping and kicking directly at his captive.

Although she had time to bring up her arms and tighten them in defense before her chest, the flying strike still almost broke through it, dealing enough force to the girl and knocking the wind out of her as the girl staggered back, landing on her behind with a painful thump.  She was starting to get rather well acquainted with the ground and somehow, irritation grasped her emotions despite her blatant grimace and the coughing that had suddenly seized her, as the feline zoanthrope tried to fill her lungs with precious oxygen.  The relentless Bakuryu simply hopped up just slightly with the intention of coming straight down again, his palm thrust out towards her abdomen as he neared his prey's forcefully seated position, hoping to drive in with furious momentum.  Uriko continued gasping weakly but kept her senses quite alert; noticing his movement, she quickly rolled to the side and her leg protruded, slicing through the air in a wide arc in an attempt to catch him in the stomach and steal his breath.

Overconfidence proved to be his enemy in that moment as her kick landed on its target squarely, absolutely no defense to weaken the blow, and the ninja landed next to her quite hard, winded from her attack, just barely managing to retain his footing.  His breathing came out in ragged wheezes and he took a moment to gain control over it, not even noticing that the female fighter had stood up as well and was slowly edging toward him with her knees bent quite lowly for balance.  Seeing his distracted state, she suddenly dashed around to his back and from behind, jumped up, focusing her body's natural lightning energy into her fist as she zapped it out toward her opponent, hitting him in the head with the pale green bolts.  Stunned from the first jolt, the ninja was not even aware of the danger until it was too late, so the technique landed, causing him to flop forward though thankfully for him, his hands lurched forward to prevent a harsher landing, having no desire to fall on his face.

Just as Uriko neared him with her foot raised to presumably stomp him, he had the awareness to tuck his body into a ball, allowing him to roll with the momentum and after the brief somersault, he was back on his feet, a dazed look in his eyes.  The sixteen-year-old positioned a yard away was gripped by a sudden impulse to glance down over herself and she succumbed, true appreciation consuming her current feelings as she grinned widely, rather proud of her improvement in fighting.  She would never reveal this bit of information to him, but the Kenpo student was honestly surprised that she had actually landed a few hits on the self-acclaimed, supposedly invulnerable Bakuryu, but perhaps this new revelation meant that she did not forget her training after all.  The girl bit her lip and a new look of determination lit up in her large dark pupils as she resumed her usual battle pose, one fist out in the front while the other lingered behind her almost casually and her knees bent just a bit; maybe she _did_ stand a chance in beating him…

Forcing his senses to recover urgently, Bakuryu turned to face the younger zoanthrope and gave her an arrogant smirk, though even that seemed rather forced as he voiced enticingly, "Not bad, little girl…  This is admittedly better than I had expected from such an amateur like yourself…"

"Hrmp, well, I told ya I'd surprise you, didn't I?"  Inwardly, she was bristling from his domineering insult, resenting his constant disregard of her person, but she decided to use physical retaliation and ran at him suddenly, turning around in mid-air to slam into him with her back.

Easily spotting the rush, the calm killer merely ducked low onto his hands and knees, meaning for her to trip and roll right over him to land onto the ground again so he could snatch an advantage and come bearing down upon her the second that she was down.  Uriko tried to make her descent smoother but the angle she caught was wrong, and she unfortunately fell to the dusty earth quite forcefully, immediately bringing up a hand to hold her forehead comfortingly as she shook it to clear out the daze.  Taking advantage of that weak instance, Bakuryu ascended briefly before reversing the direction to mount her, his knuckles white from clenching such a tight fist as he punched down at her face, seriously intending to slam into her using considerable weight.  Fortunately for the young feline, she had weak, but actual defense nevertheless, close by due to her former head-holding and allowed her forearm to take the blunt force of the attack, letting out a small cry of pain when he sent her sprawling onto her back.

Her opponent was merciless, pursuing the girl avidly as he hovered over her and reared back both fists, fueled by frustration and aggravated because she had actually managed to lay a hand on him as he began to pound down on her relentlessly.  Uriko resisted by holding twin arms up to block the furious blows, but she knew that her defense would soon be worn away so she used her legs to thrust forward, wrapping the slender lengths around his knees and jerking quickly to the side in hopes of tripping him.  Fortunately for the brunette, her attempt succeeded and he fell over, yet stubbornly unwilling to relinquish his advantage, Bakuryu rolled onto his knees and tossed one final punch towards the side of her head, intending to stun her in preparation of a following attack.  Blistering pain burst in her temples and she was unable to stop the tears that flowed down from her eyes as the younger fighter stumbled to the earth from the force, and she yanking a hand up to cup the injury protectively while shakily rising to her feet, a bit dazed.

Meanwhile, the dark-haired ninja stood up easily and immediately charged in upon noticing that she was reeling slightly, a smirk on his face as he sought to exploit her current weakness, sliding down as he neared his captive, meaning to trip her once more.  Barely able to recover herself to become aware of his movement, Uriko succumbed to the usage of previous tactics as before, willingly falling along with the flow of getting knocked off balance, but this time when she rolled over his back, her leg shot out to kick him hard.  She landed the blow squarely upon his chest, stopping his forward momentum and slamming the overzealous assassin to the ground upon his back, causing a quiet grunt of pain to elicit from his lips, but he doggedly gathered his strength together.  As he began to rise from his former lied-down position, her eyes lit up frantically with the heat of battle and the female teenager panted a bit heavily while bending her knees to crouch, wanting to draw power from the ground and her stance for his next strike.

Bakuryu quickly whirled around, turned to face the feeble-appearing girl and wasted no time in rushing her once more, but this time, he stepped to the side as he neared and swept low with the blade of his arm, ensuring a trip that would down her to his content.  Her arms flailed wildly as the Kenpo student fell onto her back, taking just a second to reflect upon how much she was starting to resent being forced into this position, before she became momentarily stunned by the impact and had to gasp for breath.  The dedicated and ever-persistent ninja leapt over her again, one arm outstretched to grasp a hold of her vulnerable throat to choke his young opponent, inwardly reveling in the way that her eyes bulged from the obvious discomfort.  Coldly glowering at her face beneath his current airborne elevation, he hastily moved his legs to clamp onto hers, and firmed them to try to lock her in place, while he reared back his free hand, more than ready to send it forward and strike her.

"Uhnn…!"  She croaked weakly, her arms thrashing around for a few minutes, a body's natural way of responding to danger, before she regained her senses and willed her fingers to fly up, grabbing his wrists as with a sudden burst of strength, she twisted them fiercely, bruising both her own skin and his with the effort.  Her antic made him jerked the injured parties away, but then he thrust an elbow toward her face, feigning an attack for distraction as his opposite hand clutched the ground, giving him leverage when he moved in to knee her in the gut.  Uriko felt her stomach lurch at receiving the blow in that area, attaining the sudden urge to throw up as well, though she managed to inhibit it and lurched her head over to where he was closest and sank her teeth into the skin of his forearm.  Warm triumph flowed energetically into the slender girl when he hissed aloud in pain, yet she concentrated and busied herself with the task of grasping the front of his ninja gi and yanked small fistfuls of the clingy material to try flinging him off to the side.

He flew with the motion of her throw and managed to roll on the side, ascending up to one knee before shooting a deadly glare at the female fighter, evident flames of raw aggravation flaring in his light-shaded matching eyes as he growled angrily, "Submit, Uriko Nonomura!"

"N-never!"  She panted insistently, dogged determination clearly etched upon her usually gentle facial features as the girl jumped to her feet, clutching her stomach with one hand, and then she bent her knees for balance while raising the free fist into the air for defense.  He allowed a half-grin to graze his lips at the show of exaggerated bravado and merely gestured for her to come-hither by crooking his fingers; the ninja was rather impressed that she had lasted this long in their battle and thought her eventual loss would almost be a shame.  Taking the initiative, she ran toward him, still holding her disturbed abdomen, and just as she approached Bakuryu, the feline zoanthrope stopped abruptly to suddenly grab both of his sides as she raised her leg to drive it down along his shins.  The struck person grit his teeth slightly and groaned as the blow connected, but he also seized her in return, tightly gripping the material of her outfit and forcing his captive towards him with a ferocious pull even as he thrust out a knee, meaning to slam into her already-injured digestive area.

Unfortunately, Uriko slammed right onto the firm peak and gasped weakly from the impact, her eyes watering as she huffed and purposely jerked to the side, hoping to loosen his grip on her clothes - the iron hold did faltered, but his offense remained sturdy.  He kicked out at her as she descended, meaning to make her fall harder to the ground with her own momentum, and that did indeed make the girl indeed land painfully as she indicated so by squeezing her eyes shut, feeling her body growing weaker from the continuous abuse.  Desperate to drive him away, her hands blindly groped through the air and luckily grabbed a hold of his fleeing ankle, which she twisted harshly, and a small smile of triumphant reprisal danced on her lips when she heard him stifling a cry of pain.  As she had hoped, he staggered back to regroup a bit, finding it slightly difficult to move effectively, though the feline was already breathing hard herself, unfamiliar with bruising her own skin using such ferocity and she was slowly getting exhausted from the battle, but refused to allow such weakness be revealed to her opponent.

The ninja silently confessed to himself that he was rather winded, but he apparently concealed it quite well, as the toils of battle seemed to have no outward effect on him - aside from his ankle, he did not appear terribly disheveled… eerily so, and he smirked at the younger fighter, provoking her with, "…Do you require more pain, Uriko Nonomura?"

"Grrr…!  You… you were on the receiving end of… of pain yourself, B-Baky…" she gasped her reply out lightly while her narrowed eyes watching him, weariness evident on her face even as she spat his nickname forward, hoping to aggravate him with its use in their current situation.

He was slightly annoyed by her stony resistance, but forced a partial grin to form over his lips, "A small measure that every fighter must endure in a battle… yet I do believe this match swings firmly in my direction.  Allow me to offer you a detour to a gracious and less painful defeat: you could save yourself the trouble and simply give in now, little girl…"

"I'll… I'll never submit to you!"  Uriko declared confidently, though she took an uneasy step back, a bit of fear entering her dark irises as she realized that her body was more tired than she originally thought; only adrenaline kept her running still, and that was a temporary effect…

He shook his head slowly as if earnestly disappointed with her response, murmuring silkily while his gaze lingered on her large orbs, "Oh, I see… such a shame indeed…  I believe I can safely assume that we have reached a negotiations breakdown, little kitten?"

The Kenpo student flinched at the alias he gave her but maintained a rather stiff and upright posture, determined to speak without faltering as she promised, "Bakuryu, you'd only bring me more pain and ugly bruises if I gave into your demands now, so quit distracting me with your dumb taunts and let's go already!"

The said figure snarled under his breath; "Is that right…?  Well, then… come attack me, Uriko Nonomura…  You will be begging to bleed under my hands by the time I am through with you."

Shaking away the image before it could fully form in her mind; Uriko bit her lip in determination as she willed her body to gather strength together and rushed forward with startling speed, flying up straight at the cobalt-haired ninja, her legs outstretched to kick him.  Surprised by her agility, he was only able to bar a defense before his form, and the momentum of her attack still carried him back; he fell in the corresponding direction and continued to roll with the motion onto his knees, forcing himself to an abrupt halt.  Meanwhile, the sixteen-year-old brunette landed neatly, both fists raised this time in preparation for either offense or defense - she was growing tired of this drawn-out battle, and very much wanted to finish it in fear that she would soon collapse from using so much energy.  Appearing in a stable status, Bakuryu emitted a throaty growl before standing to his feet and stalking towards her slowly, decreasing the pace even more as he grew closer, stopping just a couple of feet away to measure the distance that separated the two.

With a deceptive smirk, he faked movement to the left, and then suddenly dashed to the other side, leaping forward to kick around at the back of her head; when it hit, she staggered a little from the blow but fell backward on purpose, hitting the floor almost painlessly.  She thrust out both of her legs up to kick him in the abdomen, and although the twin blows hit, he doggedly forced himself not to instinctively move away and instead lashed down over his captive, quickly shooting an elbow towards her face.  Uriko raised her arms to defend whatever attack he intended to hit her with, and at the same time felt her body unfortunately beginning to get comfortable lying down, proving that she was indeed growing weary and would not last too much longer in the bout.  The persistent ninja growled irritably at her defense and relentlessly pounded at it, wanting to keep her down, since she was obviously less of a threat in that position; he could taste victory lingering on his tongue, an enticing scent shining like a trophy.

"A-argh…!"  Her arms were already hurting from previous blows and she soon found her barrage growing thin, leaving just a weak barrier before her face; Bakuryu took advantage of that by continuously delivering harsh and forceful blows.  She tried to turn away so other parts of her body could shield her vulnerable face and neck, but her stubborn nature only fueled his anger and prompted him to keep hitting the downed girl; however, he aimed for her face this time.  While he glowered with sick satisfaction from each strike that connected with its intended target, she grew even wearier and refused to be crippled in such a manner, and he sensed the change in her, absorbing the knowledge of her hesitation.  He grinned cruelly and paused, his fist elevated, poised to strike her yet again but he wanted to wait in case she offered an admission of defeat and true enough, a cry reluctantly burst from her lips, taken from the very core of her being, "_Stop!  Leave me alone!_"

"Do you submit?"  He demanded curtly, leaving no absolutely room in his voice for compassion even as he felt strange about the tears that had started to stream down her cheeks and slid off the edge, watering the earth underneath the girl.

"N-no…  D-don't make me say it…"

"Admit that you are surrendering, Uriko Nonomura.  Now."

Uriko shook her head furiously at his command, but cried out in fear when she heard him growl ferociously and the girl crunched her body into a fetal position in anticipation of more attacks; she honestly could not bear to take anymore of his abuse and finally screamed aloud, "Fine!  You… you win…this round!  Happy now, you jerk?!  Ugh… g-get off of me…!"

In a rare show of emotion, Bakuryu grinned his satisfaction, and then leaned down close to his fallen opponent, ruffling her hair condescending with a sliver of affection as he breathed into her ear enticingly, "Now, was that truly so hard…?" 

As he arose and thankfully stepped away from her, the girl remained lying down, trying to gather feeling back into her numb body, cold from her defeat while sensitive nerves were dead from being bruised so much; yet with all those difficulties, only one thought screamed consistently in her mind at that moment.

The first fight in their deal finally ended and she had lost…


	16. In Heated Pursuit

_Mega thanks to Andrew Glasco for giving me ideas on this chapter; dude, you have awesome patience to put up with me so much, hehe.  ^_^_

**Chapter 16**

**In Heated Pursuit**

          Bakuryu glanced down at the fallen fighter, feeling the odd sensation of guilt pricking at his conscience when he saw how distraught she was, but he quickly trashed it, deeming that trait worthless, yet still inquired with slight concern, "Can you stand?"

The battered youth refused to answer him from pure aggravation alone, though she was also admittedly weakened to the point that if he launched a physical attack or advance at her, she would not be able to resist it.  Unwilling to reveal that fact, Uriko turned her expression completely emotionless and fully intended to stay on the floor until she was well enough to stand again, all the while shivering from the cold, and then she closed her eyes as her muscles tightened.  Inside her mind, she was being tortured with the humiliating memory of her loss as self-started insults flew around rapidly, an inner entity lashing out to degrade the hard-learned abilities of the Kenpo student, the voice sounding much like that of her ninja captor.  She moaned softly at the mental attack, and then released an additional small whimper, unable to hide her unease toward the current situation as her arms slowly slid up to hug her sides in icy comfort, the nails digging into her own skin bitterly.

          Disregarding her condition, he realized and noised smugly, "You are now half mine, Uriko Nonomura…  If I win again, I shall dangle the strings of your life from my fingers and make you obey my every wish and command.  You will belong to me."

Fire flared up in her eyes; she certainly did not intend to lose to him again… she replied to his remark candidly, desperation in her tone as she applied a majority of her emphasis on one small word, "That's right, if you win, Bakuryu, _if_, remember that…" – she slowly sat up and rubbed her head dazedly while her arms throbbed slightly in pain – "Ugh… n-now leave me alone…"

"I apologize for once again shattering your bubble of illusions to inform that you have no right to privacy here, little girl," his smirk was stretched wide, showing that he obviously felt very proud of himself for beating down an innocent girl.

"Grrr…  Then allow me to 'graciously wallow' in my defeat, oh great Baky…" she muttered lowly, sarcasm very evident in her soft-spoken words as the Kenpo learner eased herself into a standing position, gripping her sides carefully as a grimace marred her facial features, making her appear quite vulnerable.

The dark-haired ninja sneered at her words but stepped closer to his defeated victim, invading her private space, standing just inches rather than feet from her, more than a friendly distance and caught himself almost smiling when she edged backwards, obviously uneasy with their proximity.  "Be at ease, Uriko Nonomura.  There is no shame in your defeat; like many others, you have lost to the master of the Kato School of ninjutsu…"

"Your stupid title doesn't mean anything to me…!"  She declared boldly, carelessly waving him with her hand while her eyes followed him avidly, waiting and anticipating her captor to pursue the chase and come after her again.

True to her prediction, he casually strolled toward the brunette teenager, a rare but rather chilling smile on his face as he murmured silkily, "Oh, is that so…?  Then you are telling me that 'Bakuryu' alone without the title is sufficient enough in exhibiting my superiority?"

 "Stay…stay back, I said-!"  Uriko demanded, moving away from the sadistic killer while discreetly shooting him a cool glare, and then she continued by retorting, "A-and besides, I only call you that crappy name 'cause you're too mindless to remember your real one, so… so quit thinking I have respect for you, or something else bizarre like that!"

His grin widened from the owner feeling pleased with her reaction as he stepped in, pursuing his slightly-frightened prey yet again; "Mm, make no mistake, little girl…  I indeed am Bakuryu, master of the ancient art of ninjutsu, user of the dark…"

_Gosh, this guy seriously needs to get his ego squashed down really small!  _She thought with a roll of her eyes, and proceeded to answer him wearily, "Boring!  I've already heard that before, so use something new… a-and I told you to stay back, darn it!"

Even as the younger youth sidestepped to try and walk away from him, Bakuryu merely followed her footsteps, undaunted by her verbal resistance, knowing full well that he was in the driver's seat of this confrontation at the present moment.  She looked rather disheveled from their battle with her hair hanging loosely and eyes void of their usual delightful sparkle, but he thought that she surprisingly appeared quite desirable in her current state, so weak and feeble, as if Bakuryu could easily push her down and have his way with her.  This girl amused him to no end and he honestly doubted that he would tire of her anytime soon, though he also did not have any intentions to let her go, unless of course, an obstacle arose, such as his master demanding his specimen be returned.  Focusing back on the situation at hand, he laughed inwardly, though the expression on his face appeared deadly serious as he whispered tantalizingly, "Since you are refusing me this avidly, perhaps I should begin the second fight right here and now so I can make you mine, Uriko Nonomura…?"

Her eyes widened in shock, the logical part of her brain reasoning that she would definitely lose if he decided to initiate another battle that very instant; infuriated by his threat, she stopped moving back and launched a finger forward, jabbing him firmly in the chest.  "You wouldn't dare…?!  Why, y-you rotten cheater!!"

The smug assassin absorbed her underlying fear and took the opportunity to move in closer once more; when he spoke this time; the volume had lowered to that of a whispering level and his voice was provocative, "Perhaps…  And yet, your accusation is incorrect at this current point because the rules have not been set in stone, little girl…"

"Argh…!  If you change your mind from what you first said to me about our 'deal', then you _are_ just a rotten cheater!  You oughta know that all the rules need to be straight before we started anything!"  The intimidated Uriko tried to keep backing away from her persistent captor, hating that he kept pursuing her, but to her dismay, she could not move anymore, as the resistance of a tree trunk behind her prevented further escape and she groaned inwardly.  "Q-quit following me, darn it…  I mean, I already said that you won, Baky, so what more could you want from me…?!"

Fully aware that she had nowhere else to go, the ninja decreased the space separating the two opponents with confidence that he had her trapped this time, and to show his content regarding being given this new power over his victim, a sly grin formed upon his features.  "What do I want indeed, Uriko Nonomura?  I am sure you are quite puzzled, just as I am, hah, hah…  Hmm, that is a most difficult question to answer, I assure you…"

Finished darting his enticing words at her, Bakuryu closed his eyes and tipped his head in closely to the auburn-haired girl, inhaling a bit to relish in the knowledge of her evident fear before pulling back just slightly to look her straight in the eyes, saying nothing throughout the whole process.  The surprisingly overwhelming emotions stirring in his light-colored irises were almost human, lit afire earnestly, and it made her uncomfortable gazing at him in this matter… breaking off the silent intimacy, she turned her face away.  Displeased with her action, he inhibited a growl of annoyance and instead reached a hand up, cupping her chin within his palm and fingers to gently bring his prey to glance upon him once again, not wanting to release her until he was sure that she would stay.  Uriko tried to resist the movement, but she was consuming most of her energy just to stand upright and not slide down the tree trunk, so she was forced back into the position that she detested, locked quite securely in the power of the dominant young man.

Her eyes had instantly squeezed shut when the girl was being pivoted, but when long moments of patient silence passed, she slowly creaked them open and found herself staring into his hypnotic amber pools – though to her surprise, his lingering fire made her tingle with a familiar sensation that she unfortunately could not identify…  A small protest rose on her lips, "L-let me go, Bakuryu… p-please…  Y-you're making me really uncomfortable…"

He tipped in a bit closer and continued staring directly into the eyes of his fallen captive, a seductive smirk curving his lips as he whispered enticingly, his hot breath bearing down upon her lips, "Somehow, I fail to identify your discomfort… perhaps I need a clearer demonstration…"

The younger youth shivered a bit, her skin tingling from the warmth that he was purposely emitting; she hurriedly raised her arms and splayed her palms over his chest, trying to push Bakuryu away while assuring, "I'm trying… trying to get away from you! Bakuryu, go… p-please leave me alone…"

Her raw display of fear fed his hungry power and cemented his next split-second decision; just as a hint of a grin threatened to curl upon his expression, the ninja moved for the last time, closing the distance between their lips as he kissed her with an intense vigor.  Fire consumed her skin at the contact and the weaker fighter squirmed restlessly, lacking enough strength to fully fend him off while inwardly, she cursed Bakuryu for taking advantage of her weakened state in such a manner and girl struggled not to respond, trying to kick at him with her legs.  Fully intent on keeping her in his arms, he pressed his entire body length more fully against his prey in order to prevent her attempt at stopping his advance, pleased when he heard her squeaked gasp at being forced to sudden intimacy.  His head tilted far to the side as he deepened their union, caressing her soft pink pair rather brutishly - it seemed almost as though he saw Uriko as a pool of fresh water and he was harshly dehydrated, the deep kiss deemed a vital need instead of a mere want.

Helpless to fight and push him away, she resorted to using her hands and clawing at his arms as a last resort, though that did nothing to deter the ninja from continuing to kiss her, and she was also disappointed that her nails were not breaking his rough flesh.  True to his intent, he remained resolute and soon, Uriko felt her lips being pried apart but she firmly kept them shut in anticipation of the invasion, making a silent promise to bite his tongue if the vile violator dared to enter her mouth to satisfy his own desires.  Sensing the hostility hovering about her aura, he stopped trying to get inside, despite the dire curiosity soaring through his veins to taste her moist softness, while a strange hunger ignited deep within him, desperate to be set loose and wreck havoc.  Though she still resisted Bakuryu's action in her mind, the Kenpo student released a small moan of distress just then, unable to hold it back since she was beginning to feel lightheaded from his heat, overwhelming her with his dark intensity…

After endless moments of this, he finally withdrew but did not part or back away from the brunette youth, remaining only inches from her face as he whispered harshly, "You would do well to remember who I am, Uriko Nonomura…  Whether you refer to me as my full title, Bakuryu, or… this "Baky" alias that you have constructed yourself, the face you encounter will always remain the same - the will, strength, and every desire you speak of remain adamantly unchanged."  A small grin rose upon his lips when he noticed a sliver of fear igniting in her dark irises, showing her obvious submission that consideration of his words, and that inclination gave him the needed encouragement to continue taunting his passive captive.  "You questioned me earlier on what I wanted, little girl…  Though you are currently trapped in the darkness without a slight hope to guide your way out, perhaps in time, if you are lucky enough, you will arise enough to receive the answer."

Dizzy from the abrupt parting, Uriko felt an insane longing to be in his embrace flicker briefly, but upon the realization, she shook her head frantically, disregarding the strange feeling and an uncharacteristic snarl peeled her lips back.  "Ugh… th-that was so gross, totally repulsive, yuck…!  If you want a darn whore, then go find one on the streets, you… you animal!"

Unfazed by her insistent declaration, Bakuryu grinned slightly as her reaction had been largely expected on his end, and thus he was thoroughly prepared for it; besides, the ninja presumed that she did not completely abhor the kiss because of her moan earlier.  He was unaware that it had been spawned from a reason completely opposite of pleasure and declared confidently, "Unfortunately, I do not believe that you fully understand the meaning of my words, but I feel strangely tolerant of your naïve ignorance.  Be patient, my little kitten…"

"......" Silent for a rare instance, she glanced away; her exhausted mind was unable to think of a viable or worthy response, though her inner voice gladly spat invisible fire at the ninja, enraged that he tried so hard to shroud her in mystery with his aggravating cloak of bleak enigma.

He reached a hand up and faintly caressed her cheek with the mere brushing of his fingertips as he stepped away, finally providing Uriko with the space that she so desired in the first place; "All will be resolved in due time."

          She growled aloud and made a move as if to lunge at the adversary, but just as the girl had shifted slightly, her posture weakened from the lack of support holding her upright and she unwillingly collapsed into Bakuryu's retreating arms while her eyes closed of their own accord.  Exhaustion from enduring everything in their battle had finally taken its toll on Uriko, and she succumbed to the heavy pressure of sleep, easing the pain of sharp fatigue as her breathing slowed to signify the passiveness of slumbering.  Initial faint surprise was on the assassin's expression at her sudden action, and for a second, he thought she was trying to attack him, so his facial features hardened and his muscles tensed, readying his body to counter whatever technique she would use.  But after a few minutes of her lying limply against his form in utter quiescent, he realized that she had fallen into him because she was no longer able to hold herself up, and although he glowered at her weakness, he still sought to help the presently fragile female.  

          _I suppose a battle like that was a bit overwhelming for such an amateur as this little girl…_ he mused smugly, a wicked smirk curving his lips as the cobalt-haired ninja lifted his victim up, sliding her more securely into his arms, carrying her the way he had on the first night.  As he started walking along the pathway leading back toward the cottage, his body felt twinges of pain as well, revealing to his surprise that he was also in slight discomfort as a result of the recent battle, although his injuries were nothing compared to that of the fallen one.  Uriko occasionally shifted in her sleep, her hands moving over to her captor's chest and clutching at his hard pectoral muscles, almost as if she knew whose hold she was currently in and wanted to resist, despite her current state.  Bakuryu took note of her actions with mild amusement, silently vowing that if she happened to wound him, even just by accident, he would drop her without hesitation, but thankfully for her, the brunette did nothing of the sort.

          Back at the cabin, the reserved killer calmly laid Uriko down flat onto the bed and went across the room to the dresser, opening the first drawer to retrieve a familiar roll of gauze, as well as a bottle of cleansing alcohol before returning to the passive sleeper.  He tended to her wounds with a rare tenderness about him, simultaneously having to ignore her slight moans of pain that came from the sting of applying the chilly liquid with the intention of preventing infections in her delicate body.  A small frown marred his eyebrows at her raw display from such minor discomforts, but otherwise, Bakuryu said and did nothing else to show his disapproval, merely kept dabbing her injuries until blood had completely soaked the thick, formerly white strip.  When he was finished after some time, he replaced the healing items in their original places, and then slowly strolled over to the cot, carefully climbing over the girl to rest on her other side, surprisingly considerate in not wanting to disturb her slumber.

          He took a hold of the blanket and tucked it securely around her slender form before descending next to Uriko; this time, it was the ninja that turned his back to his bed partner, wanting to subdue the strange feelings stirring within him by staring at the blank wall as he hastily tried to fall asleep.

*****

          When Uriko awoke the next day, it was almost noon and she still felt a bit groggy, though she suppressed the urge to go back to sleep and slowly arose from the cot, one hand immediately rising to hold her forehead in comfort of the first bout's aftermath.  A quick look around informed her that the domineering captor had already left the cottage earlier; she sighed in relief at the knowledge and got out of bed, heading into the bathroom to perform the usual morning routine shared by many people.  Those tasks completed, she ate her lunch and was out of the cabin within an hour of first waking up, submitting to a strong desire to train as soon as possible due to her humiliating loss, though part of her felt it was hopeless to practice the same techniques that led to her defeat.  The sixteen-year-old slowly trailed along a path in the forest, staring aimlessly at the trees around her, for once intimidated by their stillness - they reminded her slightly of the crazed assassin, standing proudly and cold, bleak with their unfeeling and dead of emotions.

          Unknown to her, the said young man was already out in the woods, in the middle of a clearing not too far from the cottage, deeply engrossed in his own training in preparation of the next battle that would ensue between him and his female prey.  Serving as both his own audience and merciless trainer, Bakuryu repeatedly executed an exercising system called a kata with true ferocity, each attack precise, quick, and deadly, landing at a vulnerable spot each time upon his invisible opponent.  Sweat coated his brow at the intense effort, but he did even not notice, his attention focused upon perfection of each technique, midnight blue bangs swaying free and wildly brushing across his forehead in-sync with the speedy movement.  His form was rather stiff as a result of such rigid concentration, so the ninja had to make the conscious effort to loosen his muscles, periodically distracting himself from the careful routine, to which he growled silently in annoyance, but pursued onward nevertheless.

Uriko happened to innocently wander near his location, where leaves concealed the dedicated training fighter, curious of the soft rustling noises that her ears had suddenly picked up, crouching when she neared the spot just in case danger lurked about.  She quietly pulled back the branches and peeked through, uttering just a small gasp when she spotted her adversary, moving with liquid grace as he practiced his unique ninjutsu skills, his speed and accuracy quite truthfully startling the watcher.  A visible cringe coursed throughout her body when he forcefully thrust his palm forward at an invisible target, and though she hated to think ominously, her active mind imaged that he was hitting her, striking any random part and bringing great agony.  Admittedly, the Kenpo student still felt twinges of pain from the bruises that he had given to her during their battle the previous day; intending not to lose again, she stayed quiet and eyed Bakuryu carefully, wanting to learn how to hopefully counter just a few of his moves at the very least.

The ninja continued his training, for once oblivious to her presence, moving with an eerie silence, likely attributed to his daily role as an assassin - only quiet grunts of strained effort followed the most difficult of his techniques, and even those were at a low volume.  He kicked low and then leapt forward, slicing high in the air with the other leg, and as his foot quickly descended back to the ground; he whipped one elbow up, his free arm moving opposite that movement before he thrust an elbow forward furiously.  A barely audible noise escaped his lips when his lower body forcefully absorbed the impact of his strong, swift step forward, but he pushed on, unfazed by the abruptly-ended combo, and quickly launched into another set of attacks with blinding agility.  Every single movement of his looked as though it had been executed a thousand times before to perfection; the intimidated female observer pursed her lips and winced as if he had struck her physically, despite the obvious distance that separated the two.

_He's a little too good… it's kinda scary…  _The girl silently admitted this to herself as she bent down and swept her hand over the ground, brushing away dead leaves and dirt from her knees; she happened to look down at her own hands in one instance and cursed their fragility.  When she compared her weak, flailing attacks to his crisp, sharp movements and slicing punches, it was no wonder that the ninja had beaten her in their battle yesterday in spite of how hard she had fought in hopes of attaining blessed freedom.  Meanwhile, the said figure had disappeared suddenly and reappeared above the same spot, his body spinning with great momentum, one leg extended outward as he descended, a considerably dangerous weapon, as gravity had its way in making him fall to the earth.  He landed and then crisply launched into yet another technique, his body surging with faint green light as he reared back, thrusting his palm forward a moment later, the energy surging through his hands and licking out to zap the imaginary opponent.

"Oh, boy…"  Uriko muttered under her breath, fully aware that she would never admit it aloud, but she truly felt impressed with his style, evil spawned as it was, and the fact remained, the assassin had beaten her without even using the techniques that he currently practiced.  Discouragement delved into the fragile veins of the teenage brunette when she realized that he had these special moves and did not fight against her with his full strength in their first battle - it was rather unsettling to think of such dark possibilities.  That bit of information obviously meant he could be stronger in the next bout by tapping into those powers, and since she was unable to recall each and every single one of her old Kenpo techniques in the given short time, it spelled doom for the feline zoanthrope.  Her expression turned sad and mournful at this thought; she tried not to think of it as wasting energy on struggling to fend off an inevitable ending, but a rainbow was hard to grasp within the midst of the currently overwhelming storm cloud…

Still engrossed in his kata, the cobalt-haired fighter leapt into the air and lurched out with his arms as if to grasp a hold of an object… or perhaps a person, and then he flipped gracefully, twirling through empty space in several full spins of a circle as he descended.  Back down on the earth, Bakuryu ended up facing the opposite direction when he had landed on his feet, striking a pose that he seemed very familiar with, posture stiff and tall while two fingers were close to his face, centimeters away from his nose.  Returning to a battle-ready stature, he reared a fist far behind his head and tipped his head downward, pausing for a moment before thrusting his arm toward the ground, a strange surge of blue energy licking the air several feet in front of him while he released a fierce war cry.  The ninja then whirled around and swiftly tossed forth a handful of shuriken, the projectiles leaving his hand even more quickly than they had appeared, flying aimlessly at random directions as the former owner did not have any specific targets to hit.

"Eek!"  Unfortunately, a couple of them came straight toward the watcher's face and she could not help shrieking aloud in panic, though her body responded by falling back immediately and thankfully out of danger as the ninja stars whizzed by overhead.  Yet the consequence of her action was that the girl had caused quite a bit of noise crashing through the branches behind her that she wedged herself into, and to further her dismay, the shrubbery surrounding her form now served as an entangling trap.  The unlucky former observer also landed on her rear end rather hard and she managed to spare a grimace at the ache, even though she felt more worried about her secret position being discovered than that mild discomfort.  Once she had gathered her senses together again, Uriko ceased all movement and remained stationary, her eyes widened in fright as she was quite completely sure that Bakuryu had detected the commotion, and would soon be investigating about her area.

The brief cacophony did indeed alert the ninja that something was amiss, and his head jerked towards the sound while his light-shaded eyes narrowed suspiciously; no one had ever witnessed a training session of his, and he preferred to keep that precedence.  The remaining shuriken flew around elsewhere, but the skilled assassin found that he cared little about their destinations as he was currently only and very much interested in one particular area where numerous noises had emitted all at once.  His stony posture assisted him in the long wait that followed, him trying to detect any new additional movements or surprised outcries while his sharp senses picked up a familiar, enticing scent that conjured up images of loveliness in his mind.  Smirking knowingly, Bakuryu abandoned his stance and began to stalk right over towards where Uriko had fallen, one fist opening and closing in-sync with his steps as he pondered over a punishment that suited the nosy eavesdropper who just happened to cross the wrong person's path.


	17. Sparring And Inquiries

_Andy, much thanks to you again for all the help and ideas you've given me in this chapter, especially with great emphasis on the teaching bit._

**Chapter 17**

**Sparring And Inquiries**

          "Ack!!  …Uh oh…"

For someone who was in real danger of being discovered and desperately wanted to maintain her secrecy, the Kenpo student did a rather poor job of it when she had shrieked her fright aloud, and realized her mistake a bit too late.  As her silent captor continued calmly walking toward her location with emotionless eyes and a constantly clenching fist, she became vividly afraid of what he had planned to take care of her curiosity and sought to escape hastily.  Gulping her nervousness down, Uriko quickly turned around and began to crawl hurriedly while ignoring the dry branches that scratched at her body, fervently hoping her speed was enough to carry her away from his approaching sight.  His soft footsteps were utterly soundless so that even her sensitive hearing was unable to make a guess on the distance separating the two opposing entities, but she figured that he would arrive soon and desperately needed to escape before he saw her.

Unfortunately for the rapidly retreating female, the ninja caught sight of her legs just before they disappeared behind the thicket of foliage that had hid her prior to the noise which alerted him of another presence close by.  A faint shadow of a grin surprisingly lit up his formerly-blank facial features at the instant knowledge that the young and ever-curious Uriko had been watching him, and how ironic that she was the first person to witness his private training.  Though he was more amused than angry with her spying, he knew that this was a perfect opportunity for him to call her on her actions, and fully intended to give her a little scare just as small and lenient punishment for disrupting his session.  Confident that he would cut her off being on foot, Bakuryu stealthily made his way around the long row of shrubbery, and soon, he emerged right in front of her path, a rather smug look on his face as he coolly glanced down at his approaching victim.

"Hello, little kitten…"

His words were spoken very softly and she barely noticed them, but as soon as Uriko had crawled out to open space, she immediately bumped into a pair of lean legs and felt a bit stunned, so she looked up to identify the source and squealed in surprise, "_Ahhh!_"

Along with that exclamation came a thankfully useful action: the auburn-haired youth jumped from surprise and quickly scooted away from her captor, dark brown eyes filled with frantic fear as she wondered inwardly, was he going to punish her for something as small as watching him train?  Such a reaction honestly seemed an absurd thought to her, because she had no idea how much the ninja valued and hoarded privacy while he was training, so Uriko felt temporary relief even as her head had tilted up to watch him very carefully.  When she thought it over though, the girl recalled that his temper had been quite unstable and his behavior was always unpredictable, and knowing that, she cringed slightly, her hands balling into fists, a subconscious preparation for an attack.  Bakuryu stood silently, an identifiable emotion flickering briefly in his light amber irises as his arms lifted to cross over his chest, retaining resolute superiority over the younger youth in his exterior despite the faint defiance in her expression.

But though he desired to witness fright on Uriko's features, the ninja soon felt a small chuckle tickling his throat when spying the inane cornered look in her eyes, and then that little spurt gradually grew into a louder, more explicit display of emotions.  His blatant laughter was a surprise to both parties, because aside from being the opposite of his usual coolness, it did not contain any sarcasm or sadistic implications, and for once, was rather a simple exclamation with humor and amusement.  Even his own mind felt baffled by this sudden positive expression, and the only reason Bakuryu could grasp upon short notice was that he found her reaction to be priceless - she acted like that of a child who had been caught in the act of taking a cookie from the jar before dinner.  Watching him with astonishment clearly evident in her eyes was the slender female fighter, her head tilted slightly to reveal confusion; she thought that his laugh sounded genuine, almost human, but certainly it had to be an impossible conjecture for such a coldhearted sub-person…

"Huh…?  Hey, what's so funny…?"  The girl slowly rose to her feet, making sure there was considerable distance between the two before averting her gaze to the dark-haired killer, freely wondering why he laughed and also thinking it to be quite the marvel, this show of emotions from him.

Bakuryu had a bit of trouble getting his laughter under control, but he did manage to after a few moments upon drawing power from his normal emotionless self that was developed under years of training as an esteemed and reserved assassin.  "The expression on your face, what a gloriously amusing sight…  Mmm, your fluster is a silent confession of your current abashed state.  Hah, hah, did I catch you in the middle of an act that you have to be ashamed of, little girl?"

Could that have been actual human emotion on his face?  No, it could not possibly be, considering he was an unfeeling, dead-hearted bastard… Uriko shook her head free of those thoughts and confessed weakly, "N-no… y-you just made me really nervous, that's all…  Geez, Baky, how else do ya think I'm supposed to feel with all those darn ninja stars flying at my face??"

At the adamantly-spoken last part of her statement, the genuine smile that humor had placed upon his face was replaced by a rather smug grin; "You are in need of coaching with my techniques, Uriko Nonomura?  You have never freely admitted so, and yet, I find you spying on me during my training session…  Now, what purpose could you possibly find in such an action, unless you do not believe that your own hard learned abilities can bring a victory, of course…?"

Instantly irritated, the feline zoanthrope scoffed and waved a hand before his face, dismissing his accusations before she spat back with, "Oh please, don't flatter yourself, Baky!  …And besides, we got totally different fighting styles, and I'm also not a 'special and all-mighty' ninja like you, so I couldn't learn your techs anyway."

"Hrmp, so you say, yet apparently your actions imply that you do hope to learn _something_…" his eyes narrowed suspiciously even as a slight smile overthrew his former smirk, "Tell me, Uriko Nonomura, what knowledge do you wish to acquire from me?  Perhaps I am able to assist you…"

 "......" To his surprise, Uriko bent her head to look down at her feet while twin arms moved to hide her hands behind her back in a show of cute bashfulness, an action that even made the ninja quirk a brow in curiosity at the strange feeling that stirred slightly within him.  "Um, Bakuryu… can you… will you spar with me?  I-I want to practice my techs with a human target…"

Her change of attitude amused him greatly while he felt genuinely surprised by the request since her constant show of determination in winning their deal coincided with asking for his help, though of course, he did not let it show upon his face.  "Well, well, this is certainly an interesting turn of events," a glimmer of amusement shone in his amber eyes just then, matching his grin, "Once again, you display such blinding eagerness to fight me, little girl…  So then, why not begin our second battle here and now?"  Upon hearing his words, the Kenpo student scowled a little and away from his line of sight, one of her hands unconsciously clenched into a fist in a silent response to his challenge, though she was thoroughly annoyed that he would bring up such an issue at the current time.  The smirking ninja reached into the hidden folds of his dark gray gi and grasped three shuriken, holding each one between his fingers, dangerous intent lingering over the small pointed projectiles as he murmured softly, "…En garde, Uriko Nonomura."

"You…!"  She growled lowly in her throat, "Argh, I'm asking for your help, darn it, not a fight!  Sheesh, we just fought yesterday, a-and you promised that you'd let me heal in-between each battle!"  Then again, the sixteen-year-old doubted that his word could truly be trusted and hesitantly shifted into her battle position just in case he did indeed want to initiate another fight so soon while an inner voice cursed Bakuryu for spilling forth lies this easily.

He sneered at her words, and then suddenly a shuriken flashed from his hand, which surprisingly shot quite wide, falling in the gap between her shoulder and neck; in actuality, there was no intention of striking her, but still he laughed at the startled reaction and spoke in a taunting voice, "Oh, what a shame… it seems that my aim is a tad off today, curious indeed, hmm…"

_D-darn it…  I guess he's serious…  _Dread lodged itself into her throat as Uriko thought that, but covered up the fear by scrunching up her face while determination filled her eyes just as the girl crouched lower, keeping her balance firmly should he decide to deter her position.  Inwardly laughing at her action, the ninja tossed forth another sharp star, this time between her legs, hoping to make her jump in surprise as he was only trying to get a reaction out of her, after all… he deemed this a mere game for entertainment.  Shrieking her shock, the Kenpo student slid back quickly, avoiding the half-hearted throw, but her widened and alert eyes closely followed the projectile as it dug into the dirt, inches away from her toes, which ignited an angry fire within the victim.  She threw him an annoyed glare and suddenly dashed forward, her arm extended as she flew past Bakuryu, intending to cuff him across the neck, but he dipped his upper body far to the side by using his hips and easily evaded the blow, sending the female youth behind him without a prize.

The agile fighter rolled into a cartwheel, landing into a firm stance, and then he knelt down on one knee to dispatch the final shuriken forward, this time allowing it to fly a sliver of an inch directly over her head, the closest he had come to hitting her.  "Tsk, tsk… you really should beware of your actions, for you may actually hurt someone with those sloppy attacks of yours, little girl…"

"Grrr, and what do ya call those stupid things that you keep throwing in the air at me, puffballs??"  She retorted before running over to where the pointed star was stuck in the ground and removed it, tucking the small weapon into her hand as evil grasped her for a second, allowing the girl to bravely uttered her next words, filled with malicious intent, "I'd be careful if I were you, Baky… remember what happened the last time I had one of these as a weapon?"

The amusement left his eyes at her quietly-spoken threat and hardened, his amber orbs taking on a cold dullness as they narrowed a bit at the memory; Bakuryu reached up and lightly grazed the scabbed cut over his face that would doubtlessly become a scar.  "Watch your bloody tongue, cat…  You are truly foolish to assume that I will not punish you for acts of stupidity simply because you are healing from the aftermath of our last battle…"

"At least I mean what I say - all the stuff that comes from your mouth is just a bunch of meaningless garbage," the girl feigned disappointment by way of releasing a huge sigh even though she continued to grip the star tightly, wondering if she should indeed inflict another wound on him, though it would probably prove to be a bad move.  "Hum, it's really too bad, and I guess I gotta admit that I was dumb enough to think you'd actually honor your word…"

Unable to push down the growing anger in the pit of his stomach, Bakuryu grit his teeth and uttered in an ireful hiss, "This is not a real battle, you pathetic little girl.  Mutter a little prayer as thanks, for if it had been, then your limbs would no longer be operating to their normal capacity…"

Uriko was aghast; "Not a real battle!  Wh-what??  H-hey, you threatened me!   Do ya like to do that for fun or something, you creep?!"  Meanwhile, she had gotten used to most of his deadly comments by now and what he said barely fazed her - it would only be until he physically carried them out that she would feel actual fear, but until then, she could brush them off…

_Pathetic amateur, she is far too emotional for her own good.  _"…If you wish to spar, then come at me."

"Does that mean… y-you'll do it?  You're gonna help me?  …Hey wait, you're actually agreeing with me on something?"  A little surprised, her guard was let down for a second and the formerly sturdy fighting stance loosened as her body felt pleased and relieved from not being so tense in anticipation of a battle just one day after being wounded quite painfully.

"Why do you seem so shocked that I have the capability of complying?  You seek my assistance, and you direly need it based on the performance of our last encounter, so quickly gather your senses and let us begin, unless you are not quite serious about acquiring my help."

"H-hey!  I'm being totally serious!  B-but… I just didn't think that you'd actually agree to help me, that's all…"  Inwardly shivering at the memory of the injuries he had inflicted upon her person not long ago, as well as taking advantage of her helpless state were still very fresh in her mind, Uriko asked her next question with timidity obvious in her voice.  "U-um, Bakuryu…  You won't… you won't hurt me to the point that you did in our battle yesterday, will you…?"

He sighed and shook his head impatiently, then folded his arms with no trace of sarcasm or cruel humor implied in his actions, seeming as a rather stiff teacher in that moment while his light-shaded eyes caught her dark ones and held them captive.  "If you request it, I will not cause you any serious bodily injuries, so fretting over that small concern is merely a waste of time, Uriko Nonomura."

"O-of course I wouldn't want that…"  His stern and serious demeanor was just the slightest intimidating, and yet the younger fighter was so thoroughly surprised he had submitted to one of her commands that quickly discarded his slight mocking tone in the latter part of his statement.  The ninja had derived so much pleasure from overpowering her that the mere thought of him complying with a single request of hers was quite unthinkable and she wondered fervently why he would agree to help her considering their bargain…  Unbidden came the thought that she could owe him a favor or some sort since he had agreed to offer her assistance, and Uriko grimaced a little, hoping he would not realize that part now or later for possible use and dangle it against her in the future.  However, she decided to trust his word for the time being since he honestly had not shown any signs of going back on a promise thus far, despite his annoying little mind games, but the feline zoanthrope knew that his intentions were just to toy with her.  "I mean, I really just wanna practice, not get any broken bones or, or huge bruises like yesterday…"

Bakuryu nodded a little in agreement and spoke to further assure her, "Agreed then, little girl…  But make no mistake on interpretations or reading too deeply under the lines - this is no act of sympathy - I am offering you this service simply because I will surely find the utmost irony in knowing that I defeated you even after aiding in your training."  He felt the need, for a strange reason, to clarify the explanation regarding his assistance to her fighting and perhaps even… somewhere deep down inside; he was trying to give an answer to his own self, who pondered on this action as bordering on insanity.

Though she would never tell him, the reclaimed student was secretly grateful for his help and wondered just how much he would truly assist her in, and then figured that just for now she should probably address him with some respect since he had just become her instructor.  "Teach me, Bakuryu…  The first thing I gotta know is how to use my speed the best way possible when I'm fighting.  I mean, even you've gotta admit that I'm kinda fast…"

"Tch…  Perhaps I will confess that I see some truth in that statement… however, your speed is your only saving grace, and to have just one attribute to your advantage is truly pathetic, for you need more crucial points to fight effectively."

Uriko visibly bristled at the insult, but she remained quiet and merely dropped the shuriken onto the ground, her earlier threat forgotten so she had no use for it now; finished interjected his shot, he continued lecturing, "Speed without direction is useless, and can easily cause an open vulnerable spot in battle that may lead to the execution of a critical blow, that which cannot be risked if you hold many dear ties on the line, as you do, little girl.  I have also noticed that you have far too much wasted motion, not to mention your movements are disturbingly sloppy.  It is not your speed that presents the problem, but rather all of the wasted motion you carry with each movement; you must learn to make your body flow with your attacks and aid in the momentum rather than be a deadweight holding you back.  If a punch is thrown, the rest of your body should reflect it, yet not exaggerate… such a mistake would undoubtedly slow down your movements, possibly rather badly depending on how much effort was wasted, so be very aware of that factor."

The female fighter scratched her head in slight bewilderment, trying to take in such an overabundance of information at once; the teachings of this well-trained ninja was certainly far more thorough than that of her Master Long those some years ago.  "Um… I'm not sure I totally understand what you're saying…  Well, I pretty much get the idea of the movement thing you're telling me, but what's all that exaggeration you're talking about?  Are ya saying not to use fake moves in battle or something like that?"

He shook his head to inform the girl that her conjecture was incorrect, and then quickly shifted into a battle stance to throw a very fast, quite powerful looking punch, making her flinch a bit despite the obvious distance between the two figures.  "This is a perfect punch… and," Bakuryu thrust his fist into the air once more in another strike, though it looked exactly the same in form to the previous blow, so his student was admittedly confused but waited until he finished talking before she would inquire of its similarities.  "…That one was exaggerated."

"Geez… I really don't see the difference, Bakuryu.  Both punches seriously looked the same to me."  She tried to imitate him, throwing a punch with her fist that sliced through the air looking slightly clumsy as usual, but when she executed a second strike, the Kenpo learner overshot a bit and flew into the ninja, unwillingly stumbling against his chest.  Her cheeks instantly flushed from embarrassment and she struggled to stand up straight again, her tone apologetic as she muttered softly, "U-um, sorry about that, I didn't mean to…"

He had only flinched a bit when she crashed into him, but he merely reached out and strongly grasped her shoulders, taking that chance to glance into her eyes, noting the faint apprehension in her dark pools with vague interest, though his expression remained unchanged.  "I am not worried about it, so rid yourself of that fright on your face.  To be frankly honest, your constant mistakes have given me quite enough time to get used to them, so it will be rather hard for you to surprise me, especially with such a mere action spawned from accident, little girl…"

She felt a bit flustered, but unsure of why; perhaps it was because they were standing so closely to each other, and once again, she captured a twinge of strange familiarity from looking into, or actually rather being entrapped by his light amber irises.  "Th-thanks, I think…  So, anyway…"  The brunette placed her hands on his arms and pushed off of them, backing away hastily, very evident in wanting to put more distance between them this time; when she ceased movement, the girl carefully retained her battle pose in preparation.  "Bakuryu, c-can you tell me what was the difference between your first and second punch 'cause I can't see it myself?"

"Your muscles are far too loose – you need to tense up your legs considerably to better maintain balance.  You must be absolutely grounded in order to maintain fluidity of your attacks, while also being able to remain in your position should a forceful blow come your way, since I presume that you will not want to follow the intended direction of your opponent.  And as for the punches… the first one I showed you was perfect," the assassin obviously arrogantly believed that his form was apparently flawless, "While the second punch exaggerates the use of my shoulders; this is a critical part of the punch, and when more forward momentum than necessary was executed on the attack, it will take longer to withdraw, and in the end, may cause me to be more vulnerable to counterattack should my strike miss.  To be placed in such a position is dangerous for any fighter, and unless you are able to recover quickly, then I would otherwise advise against an action like this, since you are so adamantly afraid of receiving inevitable injuries in battle…"

Uriko was admittedly slightly bewildered, inner conflict dueling it out as she wondered whose advice to take, since she had just received information that was the polar opposite of what her former Kenpo master said before, and she wanted to know which teacher to trust.  "Okay… um, Master Long said that feigning is more effective than tightening your muscles and you should use it to trick your opponent into thinking you'll do a different move, but then execute another one 'cause it'll catch him off guard as long as you maintain your balance all the time…"

"That advice is not wrong… but it is abandoning basics in favor of more advanced fighting techniques, and you are obviously at too low of a level to take those on in this current time, for feigning should not be used constantly, or your opponent will quickly catch on.  One-trick ponies never last long in combat; you would be much better off if you learn to solidify your balance first, and then you will no longer find the need to execute an overabundance of feign movements, but only choose to do so selectively when the person you are battling against seems overly anxious."

The avid listener nodded, absorbing as much information as she could without her head hurting, but then she felt like focusing on a new area that the ninja had belittled her on before, not wanting to suffer any longer from that weakness.  "Um, okay, I get most of what you're saying… but you know, I think that I should probably make my hits harder before worrying about all this movement stuff…  I mean, my hits definitely aren't as… they sure don't hurt as much as yours did…" she lowered her eyes in the shameful admittance, "H-hey, don't even think about calling me weak or pathetic and all that junk though, Bakuryu…"

The reserved killer gave her a chilling grin.  "Oh, but I must bind myself to the truth and admit that you are very feeble, my precious little kitten… so fragile and easy to break.  However, fear not, for under my tutelage, you will become far stronger than you are now, I can promise you that without the slightest hesitation."  He had every confidence that he could do so as well, and somewhere deep down inside, he intended to accomplish that self-made goal, almost as a challenge, though ironically, it would definitely make his ultimate desire of owning Uriko that much harder to attain.

A pair of dark chocolate eyes studied him curiously as soft pink lips pursed in confusion; "…Say, Bakuryu, why would you wanna help me when you know that you have to try and beat me in the end when we fight?  I mean, are you… are you purposely giving me bad advice or something like that to trick me?"  And then a thought suddenly occurred to her: he would learn her techniques from teaching her all this time, so as soon as she had acquired the basics, the girl intended to go off on her own and develop new moves securely away from his sight.

"Hah… no," he snorted with a cruel smirk about his lips, "I am undoubtedly superior to your level of so-called 'skill', Uriko Nonomura, and even after teaching and assisting you with your fighting, I still believe that you will have no hope and I shall be the victor in the end."

She scowled at his confidence, but such a figure with so much enigma and mystery greatly perplexed her and she desperately wanted to hear his answer as she inquired persistently instead of biting back at his domineering remark, "So then… if you really think all that, Bakuryu, why are you helping me?  Don't tell me you've actually grown human feelings such as sympathy and other stuff like that…"

"Hrmp…" the cobalt-haired ninja jerked his chin to the side arrogantly in an attempt to discard the agitation that she had ignited within him from such a bitterly truthful statement and he grasped around his mind for a feasible response.  "Do not look too much into mere simplicity, Uriko Nonomura - in fact, just consider this as my desire for a challenge from you.  As you are right now, I have no difficulty in getting what I want, so there would be very little amusement for me in easily attaining victory from fighting against such an amateur girl."

The aforementioned female narrowed her eyes in disdain and wagged a finger at him as she muttered insistently, "Well, excuse me for having a life outside of endless training…  Geez, maybe I oughta teach you a thing or two on how to live a normal teenage boy's life, Baky."

At her words, Bakuryu flinched a little as if they had actually affected him somehow, but it was so brief that she figured he just experienced a temporary muscle spasm, though his silence gave the girl time to contemplate her own offer.  Even after spending over a week living with him, she knew so little about the ninja that she wondered if now would be a good time to ask him a few questions in regards to his background, providing that he actually had knowledge on it himself.  True to her usual curiosity, Uriko hoped to learn more about her 'roommate', and since they seemed to currently be on neutral, even somewhat pleasant grounds, perhaps this was the perfect opportunity to do some innocent prodding of the enigmatic assassin.  Well, there was one question she felt direly curious about and had wanted to ask him for sometime, though of course given their unique circumstances, inquiries were not exactly given a specific time slot, but she could give it a shot now…

"Hmm… how old are ya, Baky?"


	18. Comparing Different Lives

_We've all seen this many times before, but thank you very much, Andrew Glasco, for giving me such great ideas on this chapter._

**Chapter 18**

**Comparing Different Lives**

          _M-my age…?  This girl and her questions…  Truly curious, however; I do wonder why she would want to know such information._  Thankfully for the ninja, it was his thought that seemed to stutter a bit rather than a surprised proclamation being spoken aloud, although he still felt taken back by such a question and consciously fought to conceal the said emotions on his face.  "…You are interested in acquiring information on how many years of my life I have lived thus far?"

          Admittedly perplexed to the strange way he spoke, Uriko blinked to briefly express her bewilderment, then quickly nodded her head when she deciphered his message and answered enthusiastically, "Uh huh, definitely!"

He eyed her evenly and pondered her inquiry over in his mind, a little confused himself since age was of such irrelevance to his life and line of work; then again, the young assassin recalled that an occasion just months before, a celebration of some sort.  His master had gathered the top members of their organization together, though not to explain a group mission as they all had thought initially, but rather for a night of fun and relaxation in honor of the youthful Bakuryu, and this supposed birthday of his.  There were special workers summoned as well, women in short and scantily-dressed clothing that apparently made their living by dancing provocatively while discarding their attire piece by piece; the ninja was a bit intrigued, but moreso bored than truly interested.  The Zoanthrope Liberation Front elite enjoyed their leisure time, a few of them seeming to like the break more than others as wandering hands had made several of the hired females screech in terror while loud guffaws were exchanged and the chases pursued into private quarters.

Back in present time, the dark-haired antagonist shrugged slightly and finally replied, "I was told that I am seventeen years of age as of late winter this year."  He raised an eyebrow just then and put in his own inquiry, "…And why would you wish to know such a little tidbit of useless information?"

The girl was quite surprised that he was only a few months older than her, but even moreso, she felt shocked at how he had acquired that information and it just bitterly reminded her all the more of their vastly different and contrasted lifestyles.  "You were told that you're seventeen, Baky?  What the heck?  You don't know yourself or something?"

Her concern did baffle him a bit, but he hid it well and appeared uncaring of her exclamation, refusing to admit that he wanted to know why she seemed so bewildered about the way he had obtained the knowledge when it came to a concept as simple as his age.  "Though you yourself may be intrigued, for whatever odd reason I cannot identify, that factor is irrelevant to me, so why should it matter then?  My duties remain the same regardless of my age, little girl, whether I am twelve, forty-one, or seventy, and therefore, I find no purpose in wasting time to ponder over such small matters with many other meaningful tasks still left to accomplish."

 Uriko took a moment to gather her thoughts; she wanted to make sure she expressed herself clearly, and yet carefully as the auburn-haired zoanthrope had no desire to anger her captor when the two were actually speaking to each other in a civilized manner for once.  "It's just… well, it's really sad, ya know.  I mean, how come you can't see that yourself?  Geez, Baky, you're seventeen years old and I bet you've probably never done anything that other normal guys your age do, like go to school, have friends your own age that are normal and just hang out for fun, not just 'cause you wanna complete some horrible mission.  Wow… you don't even get to enjoy those great memorable firsts that everyone loves, like dances, dates, kisses, girlfriends, stuff of that sort."  Despite her wishes to elicit her feelings on the issue with the utmost sensitivity, she was unable to hide the pity for what he had lost, and that clearly shown in her large mahogany eyes when the younger youth looked at him, her gaze naturally a bit timid from the direct contact.

The blatant expression shining very obviously in her irises made the ninja strangely angry, as he felt as though she was silently laughing at him for experiencing certain events that he did not, and therefore her life had been more meaningful than his in some way.  Yet even with those irritations pricking at his emotions, he managed to keep his cool upon realizing that she truly meant no ill to him in that moment and decided to appeal to the young cat's curiosity in hopes that her light would be trampled upon.  "All that you have just mentioned now, I find to be rather meaningless in the life that I lead.  Hrmp… please, do enlighten me then, Uriko Nonomura, and answer me this: what fulfillment do you find in such tedious worthlessness?  What satisfaction do they bring to you even when you know that those small temporary pleasantries are nothing more than a mere passing phase, and after the period has ended, have you found actual purpose for their brief existence in your life?"

"Lots!"  She exclaimed instantly, her form practically vibrating with insistent emphasis that was placed into a single word as the girl seemed to glow energetically, but she hurriedly calmed down upon noticing the scowl briefly flickering over the steely face of her captor.  "I mean, there's really no good way to describe it… I guess it's something like, you just feel so excited and happy at times, waiting for something great to happen.  And with school, it's mostly kind of a drag, but at least you get to be with your friends and secretly goof off in class if the teacher's just too darn boring and he's so busy that he never notices anything anyway."  The female student giggled at a memory that flashed in her mind of such an incident, though with that happiness came a matching sorrow, bitterly reminding her that there was a possibility she would never experience a similar occasion again.  "I… I also get asked out sometimes, so if I'm not busy with my friends, I'm usually on dates, and even though my sister gets a little worried 'cause I'm not home that often, she knows that I just wanna have fun and enjoy being a normal teenager…"

Though he verbally remained adamant against her claims, a miniscule part of Bakuryu surprisingly felt wistful; he had endured far more harsh experiences than this young female who often teetered on the edge of superficiality, and yet she seemed to know more than him.  He had a rather unique purpose in his setting, one that gave him vast maturity at an age where others would indubitably act different, though this life that Uriko went through; it apparently had perks as well, even if he failed to see why she was still so jubilant all the time.  Of course, the proud killer would never admit that to her; "Tsk, tsk…  Such fiery passion wasted on a preposterous topic… these supposed pleasantries of yours, they sound utterly pointless to me, little girl.  I find myself unable to see your situation clearly, so perhaps you can answer this for me: what benefits will you draw from it all in the end, aside from anxious expectations of a future experience that may not even occur unless you make the conscious effort to pursue one?"

The sixteen-year-old raised an eyebrow at his question while a huff of slight annoyance pushed out from her lips; he just had to make everything so difficult, especially concepts that she found very easy and were rather instinctive than solved by reason.  "Geez, I already told ya, happiness!  Don't you like to be happy, Baky?"

He shot her an acidic glare while she squirmed uneasily under his intent gaze.

"O-kay… I guess not…" the girl tugged at the ends of her long braid sheepishly, a bit uncomfortable with his eyes staring so hard, his obvious answer lingering in them, just wanting for an opportunity to lash out at her for suggesting other possibilities.  "I mean, I've seen you smile like, only once, but maybe even that was more of a grimace or something… oh heck, you should still embrace joy, Baky!  You'd probably live longer and have better situations if you were happy more often, ya know…  And maybe, just maybe… if you enjoyed the good things in life, then you'd finally feel bad for unfairly taking them away from other people…"

The ninja merely snorted in denial and jerked his chin to the side in a blatantly arrogant gesture, showing that he was unaffected by her words, despite a prick of curiosity that had suddenly arisen within him, but he squashed the tiny presence down.  "Those pathetic fools should be glad that they served to please my master in spite of their futile resistance against joining our righteous cause, and whether or not you feel this is fitting compensation, their payment for wasting our time is their lives, which I take with pride."

Wrinkling her nose at the negative connotation, Uriko shook her head in annoyance and insisted, "Oh, come on, stop thinking about that guy for just a darned minute, will ya!  Sheesh, it looks like you really _do_ need me to teach you a couple things about enjoying your life, Baky…"

Twin amber eyes hardened at her implication that he needed her assistance in any form; he was a high-ranking member of the ZLF, second only to the leader, whose job differed, and therefore Bakuryu, possessing a specialty as an esteemed assassin, had the top slot in that area.  This young cat was a mere girl who lived everyday plagued with ignorance, blissfully unaware, or perhaps even purposely blind, to the harsh reality around her, refusing to participate in events of great importance relating to the comfortable existence of zoanthropes.  Her personality did, however, possess rare attributes, that he would admit, with such elation and futile hope in the face of danger that even threatened her life, and yet Uriko seemed to draw endless strength from her spirit - what a strong one it must be.  But although the reserved killer granted her those small comforts in his mind, he still would never think of asking for her help, especially in regards to a ridiculous manner like the one she had just suggested, exchanging his comfortable lifestyle with her childish foolishness…

Puzzled by his long contemplative silence, his captive tilted her head to the side slightly in curiosity, and so he finally responded with, "…You seem to be foolishly proud of your tedious and pitiful routines with all the insecurities and powerful whirlwinds of uncertainties, but be absolutely clear and understand this: know that I need to learn absolutely nothing from you, Uriko Nonomura.  You are merely close-minded and therefore scorn the way I live, but rest assured that my life has its purpose, and I rather revel in my accomplishments, so stop wasting your energy on being concerned for someone who is completely comfortable with his person."

"Why not?"  She fired back instantaneously, and then smiled a bit coyly when continuing further with, "Are ya scared of what you might discover?  Well, Holy Mackerel… and all this time I thought you just saw me as a harmless 'little girl' that couldn't stand up against the 'oh-so-mighty Bakuryu'…"

He was slightly annoyed that she had taken his seriousness with a grain of salt when he wanted her to truly understand his viewpoint and hopefully gain a wider perspective of life, and yet Bakuryu found himself chuckling in spite of her light mockery.  "Very confident and brash for such a figure with your current disadvantaged position, little girl…  However, perhaps your insistent passion has arisen certain curiosities, and I readily admit to becoming a tad intrigued in your proclamations after all… please, do tell, just what might you teach me?"

"How to live your life as a guy should at your age, of course!"  Uriko piped immediately, a sparkle lighting up in her eyes as she spoke, "Hey, you'll never get to be seventeen again, and there're some things that you really need to learn in your teen years before you turn into an adult and have to be all responsible…"

_Her 'eloquence' is truly effective in convincing me to take her words seriously.  _"So you say…  Well then, humor me," – a slight smirk – "What do I need to learn before this dreadful age of seventeen bitterly eludes me come the late winter of the beginning of next year?"

The vibrant teenager was silent for a few minutes, carefully thinking over what she should say; "Well… I don't think you go to school, so that's outta the loop… but you definitely need some social skills, that's for sure!  I mean, you talk really funny, Baky, like you're old or something, and you're only seventeen – you should use a little slang and be natural.  Oh yeah, and your clothes!  Okay, I know you're a ninja and all, but seriously, do you gotta have on the same kinda thing, just in different colors, every single day?  Don't you have other clothes to wear?"

The cobalt-haired ninja quirked a brow at her inquiries, a bit annoyed at her accusations, and yet her startling accuracy intrigued him just a tad so he did nothing to stop her train of thought, merely inquiring with earnest curiosity, "You find flaws in my attire?  How odd, for I see nothing wrong with being proud of my class and allowing my opponents the chance to quickly identify my fighting style.  Hrmp… and simply because this childish slang of yours is not in my vocabulary hardly gives you the right to declare that there is something wrong with me, Uriko Nonomura."

"Hey, all I'm saying is that I've never seen anyone but you wear that…ninja outfit thing…before, unless it was in an old Japanese movie, and let me tell you, it definitely wasn't worn by a teenage boy!  Baky, you… you should be way more worried about normal stuff than killing people…" her voice grew soft, "And for your information, there's nothing wrong with slang!  It's normal for us teenagers to talk that way… but I guess you wouldn't know that…"

"Who was given the privilege to determine what is 'normal' and how to dictate our lives with this conformity nonsense?"  He questioned with a slight edge in his voice; Bakuryu was not used to being contradicted, and this young victim of his certainly had not been given the right to do so, no matter what deceptive illusion of freedom she currently dreamed up in her mind.  "I, for one, find my individuality to be a good attribute, you poor, pathetic little follower.  I would never desire to partake in the ignorant masses full of people that all dress and talk alike simply because they wish to be accepted into their ridiculous cliques, which are always short-lasting as when trends change, everyone tries to adjust to the new wave of popular blather.  Those people are to be pitied, not taken seriously…"

"Conformity?"  Uriko furrowed her brows but her eyes narrowed, once again showing pity for the other bystander.  "Hey, that's not true, you're totally disregarding something that's normal and should be instinctive, Baky!  Geez, it's really sad that you gotta learn things you should've known a long time ago…  How can you get back all those special experiences that you'd only go through in high school and stuff?  You're really missing out and you have no clue…"

"'Special experiences'… hah!"  Her captor grinned rather broadly and barreled on ahead, fully intending to crush her disgusting and quite overwhelming optimism as he suddenly wanted to break her spirit right then and there, severely aggravated that she tried to flaunt her happiness so blatantly before him.  "Hrmp, rest assured, Uriko Nonomura, your words bring me no sadness or nostalgia…  I firmly believe that I am missing nothing but the empty prattle of teenagers… dreams that will turn into failures, crushed by reality… romances with adolescent whores, abusing their uselessness by prancing about and dangling a string of seduction to manipulate others and attain selfish desires.  No, I wish to not be a part of this time-consuming nonsense, so you can keep your memories of the pathetic teenage life to yourself, little girl, for I can promise without hesitation that you will never again experience any of those.  You have made your last pointless call to a friend, finished the final walk through the halls of your school, and your most recent date will mark the end of your social prosperity… and yet, fear not, my dear kitten – I can give you my word that you will at least still experience this supposedly blissful union of a kiss in the near future."  A wicked glint briefly flickered in his dark pupils.

Drawing an attribute from her feline counterpart, the sixteen-year-old hissed defiantly as she stalked toward her captor, determined to show him her strength in character while spitting out heatedly, "That's what you think!  At least I experienced those great things, and you never will, so you're not ever gonna be able to live that part of your life 'cause you're all stubborn and mull-headed, but it's your loss and I really don't care what you think – everything you say is wrong!  And don't even remind me of that disgusting sloppy kiss of yours!  Ugh, I hated every second of it!  See??  You even ruin kissing because you don't know how to, and tons of people your age aren't that stupid!"

Hidden from her sight, Bakuryu clenched a fist tightly next to side, a sure sign that he was growing angry with her proclamations and desperately trying to fight the urge to strangle her, so then he fired as a distraction to her seemingly-endless rant, "Oh, is that so?  You believe that I should envy your numerous experiences in a role as just another one of those usual wanton and whorish teenage tramps?  Tsk, tsk, little girl…"

Her eyes flared up immediately, dark brown irises filled with uncharacteristic fierce ire as the younger youth lurched forward suddenly and grabbed a fistful of the freely fluttering scarf, pulling the ninja toward her position with rare and rather uncanny strength.  Honestly caught by surprise as he had not expected such a passionate reaction, he was forced in her direction and almost cringed from being so close to his captive when he had not willed the intimate proximity himself, though concealed it carefully.  She yelled right into his ear, "How _dare_ you say something like that, you darned ninja creep-!!  Not that it's any of your business, pervert, but I'll have you know that I've never slept with anyone before, ever!  I have morals, you know, unlike you with the crappy kinda life that you live, hurting people for no good reason!  I'm not one of those cheap women that you probably pick up on those lonely nights while you're thinking about how pointless your life is, doing nothing but serving a stupid ugly hag by going out and killing people that don't even deserve such horrible treatment!  You're just a bloody mindless robot, and you'll always be lower than dirt in my eyes, Bakuryu!!"

Her insistently-spoken exclamations sent fury coursing through the assassin's veins, because a small part of him was actually able to see some truth in what she said, but overall, he refused to believe in such babble verbalized from this pathetic amateur girl.  His ears twitched a little from absorbing the force of her passionate outcry and a furtive inner voice silently urged her to continue, wanting to learn more of this strange life experienced by many others his age that he had indeed lost due to his area of specialty.  Inflamed with this foolish agreeing particle, Bakuryu harshly lurched the back of his hand toward the face of his young victim, meaning to slap her away from him so that he could escape the burning truth shining on her avidly-glowering mahogany irises.  Expecting a reprisal of some sort, she spotted movement and sidestepped immediately, yet to his surprise, did not relinquish her hold on his scarf and instead gripped it even tighter in a great display of irony as the supposedly-weaker fighter brought _her_ captive closer to witness the power of her stubbornness.

A pair of scornful dark eyes glared deeply into his light amber shades as her lips barely moved, hissing aloud in a rather taunting tone, "What's the matter, Baky, you getting mad over a supposed 'whore'?  At least I can say that I have some morals and I enjoy my life the good and right way; unlike you, you heartless coward, I didn't throw my freedom away to be a slave to some grass-headed pervert that's so clumsy he can't even get his way himself and has to use dumb teenagers without a single clue about living…"

"I am a coward, you say…?"  The inwardly-enraged ninja laughed humorlessly, using a smirk to show how little he cared about her words and that she was not affecting him the least bit even though he struggled to withhold his anger inside and try to control a possible tempest.  "I believe you, my dear kitten, are the one fleeing and whimpering for her life at my feet, so tell me… who is the true coward here?  Hrmp, hear this and understand me well: if my master allowed it, I would see you rotting dead in an instant and by my eager hands, Uriko Nonomura, lying on the ground cold and motionless, never again able to spit forth this disgusting vile so freely from your loose, flapping lips…"

Though the auburn-haired youth felt livid upon hearing his insistent promise and wanted to hit him, she inhibited the feeling, knowing full well that there was more ammo to fire than what he had just used against her and made a silent vow to stand up against his bold proclamations, tired of letting him batter her around for so long.  "You're the one that beat up and kidnapped an innocent girl walking to school, made her life a living hell, gave her a horrible choice that's really more like some sick game, used surprise attacks to trick her into battle, and worst of all, you even molested her with your disgusting lips when she was too weak to fight back!  I call that a coward with nothing but a black heart, if he's even lucky enough to have one; what the heck do **you** think that kind of person is?!"

His answer was simple, a smug grin upon his lips; "Absolutely brilliant and ingenious."

Thoroughly disgusted with his reaction, Uriko released her temporary captive, but in a manner that was rather unusually mean for her; making sure that her hold on him was firm, she summoned up her force and threw him away to the side, almost smirking when she saw him reeling through the air.  The presently-disempowered ninja was admittedly shocked with the power of her physical action, and he barely managed to right himself before he fell, though he still managed to land on his feet, descending on one knee due to the lack of balance.  Not yet finished spiting him, she continued provoking, "I think you're scared of me, Baky… you don't wanna learn about stuff that you don't know, and you think that I could be right and know a heck of a lot more about life than you do.  Well, at least I definitely know how to kiss better than you."  She puckered her lips briefly in a snide gesture, teasing him by wordlessly implying that his lack of skills made him a lesser person and thus she possessed some sort of superiority over him despite his obvious higher level of fighting skills and physical strength.

Bakuryu spat to the side disrespectfully and clenched his firsts before his face, cracking the knuckles loudly in a suggestive, nonverbal threat as he muttered with bitterness heavily drenching his tone, "I am sure that you would with your promiscuous and scandalous lifestyle, you juvenile tart…  And you can keep your knowledge of worthless teenage fun and games, for I do not wish to hear any of it and become corrupted as the rest of you young fools have, embracing naïveté as if surrounding occurrences contain no problems or consequences of the future.  I, little girl, know all that I will ever need to comfortably live my life.  Unlike you pathetic children, I shall undoubtedly survive, while your kind withers and dies at the hand of my brethren, as we are the rightful owners that should be in control of society, not allow walking mistakes to dictate normality and spread such vile corruption around…"

"You're a minority," she insisted, surprisingly unfazed his words as she spoke very calmly, her previous outburst forgotten, "It'll be a really, really long time before 'your kind' – nothing more than scum, actually - can rise and just _try _to take power from the rest of us smarter ones.  You're fighting a lost cause, ya poor ZLF hound, sorry to break it to you.  I can promise that you'll never win against us, so just give up and go live under a rock or whatever for the rest of your sad life."

He chuckled bitterly.  "Such blatant ignorance…  You have no idea what goes on behind closed doors, Uriko Nonomura…  Do allow me to correct you, for you see, your time is limited and no matter how much strength you futilely exhibit, the rushing tide will always keeping rolling in its ancient rhythm – I assure you that eventually, you shall be overwhelmed by its steadfast power."

Waving his words away due to the fact that she had calmed down and did not intend to erupt again, Uriko tilted her head to the side a bit as she regarded the ninja through slightly narrowed eyes, pondering over an inquiry in her mind and thought about asking, but felt concerned in regards to what it could lead to.  "Tell me something, Baky… did you ever have a normal life?  Were you born from a woman, or were you built in some kinda wacky experiment by that pervert Busuzima?  Do you have parents or any family at all?  You have any idea what were you like before you became a robotic and mindless drone, like the way you are now?"

The dark-haired ninja scowled and spat distastefully, "I am a man with flesh and bone, not that of steely machine parts, you fool… that much should be obvious.  And… to answer your question simply out of boredom; allow me to reveal that I indeed have no recollection of my life before my service to my master, although… I do seem to recall my past name."

His captive did not seem to have paid attention to the last part of his statement, as she rolled her eyes and deadpanned, "Yeah, yeah, geez, I already know your name: Bakuryu, master of the Kato arts of ninjutsu or whatever, and all that other stuff you said before, blah, blah, blah…"

His gaze was intensely serious as he corrected her, "That is not what I meant, Uriko Nonomura.  Bakuryu is the alias I abide by now, still rather new as I have only carried it with me since I have dedicated myself to my master; I had some meaningless life before finding my true purpose, and with that came a different name, obviously that of a weak, pathetic young teenage fool."

"…Okay, aside from all that dumb teenage-bashing you just said, what exactly do ya mean by the first part?  Did you used to be called another name or something?  Huh, I gotta admit that I'm surprised you'd actually remember…"  The female zoanthrope now looked a little bewildered as she glanced at him with earnest curiosity shining in her eyes, allowing him a glimpse of her naturally innocent nature; he felt strangely stirred by the unfamiliar emotion she emitted that he had absolutely no connections with…

He nodded slightly and closed his eyes as his memory struggled to recall the label of his past life, and when he finally grasped a hold of it, the presently-peaceful antagonist revealed, "Yes, little girl… and though I scorn the corresponding life, I am still acknowledged of my former alias.  It was… Kenji Ohgami."


	19. His Forgotten Identity

_Whew, great big thanks to Andrew Glasco for his ideas on this chapter!  And yay, I finally get to call him Kenji instead of Bakuryu!  I hate that alias…_

**Chapter 19**

**His Forgotten Identity**

"......?!"  Upon hearing that name, ice shot straight into Uriko and her body froze rigidly, a single bitter memory arising in her mind to make her almost scowl, even though she still felt compassion for the person attached to the particular alias from her past.  The surname Ohgami reminded her of Yugo, her sister's deceased boyfriend, while Kenji was… but could he really be the same person she met on an innocent visit three years ago, that quiet boy she had gotten off to a bad start with?  It could not be possible, and yet the person standing right in front of her claimed he was someone that should have been dead in the present day; through tears and choked sobs, Alice had told her younger sibling of two brothers' deaths.  Now faced with a surprise of a lifetime, the auburn-haired youth felt thoroughly confused and was unsure of how to react, just remained silent and blatantly stared at her captor, stuttering uncontrollably after some time, "K-Kenji Ohgami?  Y-you're really…?  I… I can't believe… whoa, Holy Mackerel…  Wh-where the heck did you come from…?"

The apparently-revived Kenji Ohgami folded his arms loosely about his chest and regarded the girl through narrowed eyes, finding her reaction to be rather surprising and yet irritating at the same time, as he felt a tad insulted by her earlier assumption that he was created rather than born.  "If you are referring to my birth place, that information is unknown to me as well, so I cannot offer you a definitive answer.  In fact, I discovered this alias only when I was referred to that name by a male adversary in Tokyo three years ago…"

She was visibly shaken by his recent revealing and her eyes glazed over slightly as the female zoanthrope frantically glanced away - that was where she and Alice currently resided, and the Ohgami siblings were in a house only a few blocks away when they were alive…  "O-oh, gosh…  D-do you know…  Um, h-have you ever heard of a man named Yugo Ohgami…?"

"…Yes."  The ninja nodded a bit to further emphasize his confirmation, then gazed at Uriko intensely, thoroughly curious about her reaction, wondering why she had been affected so much by finding out his true identity and was continuing to probe him.  "Your reaction is rather strange…  Why are you this entranced with simple information?"

Disregarding his last remarks from shock, the sixteen-year-old gasped loudly at the answer, and then quickly covered her mouth with her hand as more questions exploded in her mind; she find it hard to believe that he could even possibly be alive.  "K-Kenji…?  Is it… can it really be you…?!  B-but, but that's impossible, Alice told me Kenji was dead-!  No, you've gotta be someone else…!  B-both Kenji and his brother Yugo died three years ago…"

"…What are you talking about, Uriko?"  His curiosity had admittedly been aroused by her questions and now he wanted to know exactly why she seemed so surprised, hence the usage of her first name; it did not occur to either party that this was the first time he had spoken to her without a sliver of mockery in his tone.

She looked at the ninja dazedly and revealed, speaking very softly, "I-I knew a Kenji Ohgami… h-he was Yugo's adopted little brother… but…but Alice told me that he died when he was fourteen…  Oh heck, this has to just be some kinda weird coincidence; you're not the only Kenji Ohgami in Tokyo or all of Japan… you're supposed to be dead if that's the case."  Her hands shook from uncertainty as she turned her head back to study him carefully, large dark brown eyes wandering all over his form to note his features while she struggled to recall an image of the young teenage boy she had met those years ago.

"I am supposed to be dead, you say?"  There was no anger in his question, rather mild amusement that, according to his girl, he should have been lying under the earth, void of all life when ironically, the assassin had actually been roaming around the city and ending chosen existences.  "I apologize, but I have no more answers to further ease your questions.  Regardless of what happened, Kenji Ohgami is not who I am anymore, one way or the other…"

Albeit shaky, her voice was desperate as Uriko pleaded to know, "A-are you… are you really Kenji?  The same one I met when I was thirteen?  Do you… do you think you were once him?  Geez, this _has _to be a coincidence, a really, really freaky one…!  Oh p-please, answer me…"

"I… I am unsure…"  He stammered a bit, and after shaking his head, spoke further, but avidly refused to tell her that he truly remembered nothing before the start of his servitude to his master, so she could be right, yet he was unable to assist her in confirming that conjecture.  "I have no memory of meeting you in that year of my life…  Huh, I was that age four years ago… Perhaps the time frame fits on your side, since you are younger than I am; however, I truly do not recall this incident you speak of."  _You and I fought each other just after I had finished mastering the Kato arts when I was fourteen, Uriko… but do you remember that?_

Because of his disappointing answer, the girl sighed forlornly, yet she still spoke with a far-off dreamy look in her eyes, "He…  I only met him once, but he was a really shy boy: quiet, didn't say much, and when he did, spoke really softly, too…  We…we didn't like each other 'cause we got off on a really bad foot, but... but looking back at it now, I guess I gotta admit that he was kinda cute, just a little…!  I liked his eyes.  The color was really weird, but in a cool sorta way, you know?  I think he was wearing something to cover his head that day though, 'cause I don't remember what his hair looked like for some reason, but I bet it was probably just as unique as his eyes…"  She gazed at the present, older Kenji thoughtfully and started walking toward him, her arm outstretched and her hand moving toward his shoulder to grasp a hold and follow through with the intentions that had just arisen in her mind.  "Hey… turn around and look at me; I wanna see what your eyes are like…"

As if her request went unheard by his ears, the assassin remained absolutely still in his position, saying nothing, as the thought of being someone she had met in the past gave him an odd, perturbing feeling; he was honestly unsure of what to think.  Firmly deciding to take the initiative, Uriko stopped just before the silently brooding teenager and raised her hand, touching his shoulder while noting with interest that he was absentmindedly looking over her head, entranced in some sort of strange daze.  She felt just a tad annoyed at his slight height advantage over her, but nevertheless, the persistent inquirer pursed her lips as she rose onto her tiptoes and waved her fingers in front of his face, trying to prompt him to glance down at her.  Somewhat snapped out of his reverie, he indeed looked toward her direction momentarily, but then uncomfortably averted his gaze and twin lids closed shut together, the owner unwilling to admit this disturbing possibility – he was Bakuryu, not a mere boy named Kenji Ohgami…

The auburn-haired youth shook his shoulder gently before moving closer to him, her face right in front of his, and breathed her warmth down upon his skin when she murmured in a soft plea, "Kenji, c'mon now, open your eyes and look at me…" she paused and waited to see if he would comply, and when he dogged remained stationary, she giggled slightly, continuing with, "Aww heck, you're just stubborn as ever, like ya were back then, aren't you… Kenji?"

"…Gah…"  The normally-calm and controlled ninja found himself showing a tiny bit of faltering as he shivered from her breath splaying over his flesh, and then he quickly turned his back to her, feeling terribly uncomfortable with the current situation.  Needless to say, his mind was from the possible changes that this might have on him, and though he hated to relinquish any power, an inner voice admitted bitterly that the more often she used his true name, it added to his growing unsettlement.  As the young ninja slipped out of his captive's loose hold with ease, she scoffed a little, yet followed him around persistently, desperate to find the answer not only for herself, but also in hopes of somewhat helping him regain his former lost self.  "Kenji!  Oh, don't run away from me!  I need to know if you're really who I think you are, and heck, so do you! Sure, you might not be Kenji after all; maybe you're really Bakuryu with a similar name as someone I once knew before, but… but wouldn't you rather find out the truth right now than keep playing guessing games with yourself…??"

Rigid from tension, he sighed after a long moment of silence, conceding in that period of uncertainty that she was right, so he finally decided to agree with her method of realizing his identity and slowly creaked the shielding lids open, focusing intently on the younger teenager.  Shyness suddenly struck Uriko as she took a few minutes to gather herself together and vowed to avidly concentrate and focus on not only just looking at him, but really seeing into the deadly killer's soul, and through him even, if that was possible.  The one afternoon from her past when the two first met each other, Kenji had held her eyes for no longer than a few seconds, but strangely, his gaze was captivating - she especially remembered the way his dark pupils seemed to pierce into her very person.  The girl wondered what she would see if she looked into the assassin's eyes, and ceased the agonizing wait by shaking out a deep sigh before she looked up, staring directly at him, gazing into those deep pools of arrogance and discern of her person that she had despised from the beginning of the kidnapping.

On the other hand, the bystander that was uncertain of his identity stared back at Uriko rather dully, unable to deny that he felt terribly uncomfortable at having no power over the present situation, and even worse, he truly had not the slightest idea of what to expect.  He was even unsure of how to react whatever should transpire, and although part of him wanted to deny it all, just push her away and call her a fool, a larger portion of him reasoned to know the truth; after all, just who had he been before he retained the role of Bakuryu?  The dark-haired ninja would never admit it aloud, but she was truly the only one that had access to, and could possibly answer such a question that now burned hotly in his mind, demanding that this girl immediately spill forth everything in her knowledge.  Meanwhile, the said female had been thoroughly studying for him for some time, taking note of the light brown color of his irises and the small twinge of a faint orange color that was mixed in as well, melding together to become a unique shade of amber.

Staring into the deep pair was direly hypnotic and Uriko felt herself become a little dizzy after being sucked into the quicksand whirls too long, as he seemed to hold her merely with his eyes, although physically her captor was still and made no move to touch her.  Yet even without that influence, her position faltered slightly and the momentarily dazed youth stumbled a bit and fell against the hard chest of the young man standing rather closely in front of her, while both hands shot to clutch his strong arms for additional needed support.  He was admittedly surprised by the sudden action but made no move to push her away, just held the younger teenager while attaining absolute silence, helplessly submitting to her gaze, finding this fierce persistent spirit to be quite remarkable of her own accord.  She murmured weakly just then, her words betraying a slight stutter as she was truly stunned by the revelation, "G-gosh, it… it's true…  Y-you're Kenji, Yugo's younger brother, the one that's supposed to be dead…  I don't know anyone else that has… that has such strange eyes like yours…"

"What…?"  The cobalt-haired ninja was almost stunned to hear her confirmation, and although he still knew nothing about this "Kenji Ohgami", he admitted to it being a startling revelation and continued to remain in a frozen pose, his eyebrows furrowing as if trying to process the new information.  He paused for an endless moment before willingly muttering his own shock, "I am… Kenji Ohgami… the younger brother of Yugo Ohgami…"

"G-gosh, I really can't believe this…" Uriko continued musing softly, confusion drenching her expression, "Did Alice… lie to me again?  Kenji, she said that you died three years ago on the battlefield, fighting the ZLF next to her and Yugo…  B-but you're here right now, still living and breathing…  So how could that be, unless my sister lied, but why?  Why would she do something like that?"  She glanced up at him again, her eyes pleading silently for an answer that he did not even have for himself, and then proceeded to raise both of her hands up, grasping the corresponding sides of his face to make sure he felt her emphasis.  "Holy Mackerel, I just can't believe... I can't believe that you're actually standing here alive, Kenji…"

"Huh!"  The bewildered seventeen-year-old recoiled from her touch, taking a step away; under normal circumstances, he would not have allowed such a reaction, but in truth, he was almost frightened and intimidated by the aspect that this girl knew of his life before now.  He was a bit intrigued, but moreso unsettled as he spoke the alias aloud just then, testing how it sounded coming off his tongue; he had just discovered that this boy with a simple name actually meant something to his victim… and yet, what did it matter now?  "Kenji Ohgami… hmm…"

Mistaking his gesture as a positive surrender, Uriko squealed excitedly and grabbed his hands without even realizing her own action as she exclaimed in her usual enthusiastic way, "Do you remember, Kenji?  Do ya, do ya?  Can you see Yugo and Alice in your mind?  Any images of your room come to mind when you think about living with Yugo those years ago?"

Suddenly annoyed with her overwhelming cheerfulness in discussing such a serious matter, Kenji withdrew into his familiar shell of coldness and forced himself to eye her evenly as he hissed a bit viciously, "Save your breath, little girl…  I truly recall nothing that you speak of."

Unfazed by his sudden change in attitude, the girl tugged on his hand and persisted passionately, "Then do you want me to tell you?  Wouldn't you like to know what kind of person you were and what kinda life you had before all this… this horrible killing stuff?"  Unbeknownst to both parties, the captive was gradually gaining power and authority over him and the situation from the knowledge that she had about his person, subconsciously taking control away from him, whether he realized it or not…

Indeed, the young man's mind was still reeling so much from the possibilities and questions that he did not even think of the control he was granting her, and accentuated a rare show of meekness by merely nodding a tad before he inquired, out of pure curiosity, of course, "Yes… I suppose I will have to rely on your memories as guidance for this occasion, Uriko, so tell me… who was I?"

Her large dark eyes become soft with memories – although not all pleasant, they were undoubtedly better than reminiscing on the events that had just occurred this past week, what with the unwanted kidnapping and their repeated bickering.  "Well… you were Kenji, this really quiet boy, but I heard you were really smart, from what Alice told me, 'cause she said that you did so well in school and Yugo was very proud of your marks.  Oh, speaking of him, he's your older brother, and he adopted you when you were a kid or something like that; I'm not sure though, since Alice didn't tell me too many details about it.  But hey, she said that you guys were happy living together, and didn't seem to care about being the only other family member. She also told me that you seemed to like her too, probably 'cause you thought she made Yugo really happy, and you guys could be even more of a family if she got married to him in the future…"  Finishing the succinct summary on details about the young boy and his family ties, she trailed off slowly, her mind unsure on whether or not the remaining Ohgami sibling wanted to hear about her own interactions with him.

"And you… you knew me, Uriko?"

Recalling their first encounter, Uriko nodded hesitantly, a bit reluctant to reveal details that on that particular short event, but decided to concede to his wishes; she realized that it was, after all, important enough to him that he would ask.  "We… we only met once, Kenji.  Actually, we kinda hit it off pretty badly, and we never saw each other again to try and make things better.  I think that you and I didn't like each other 'cause our personalities were so different; I was kinda loud and cheerful, and you were quiet and shy. But, you know… I do really wish that we'd handled everything differently… I mean, it's possible that we could've gotten to be friends at school or something.  I-I felt really bad when Alice told me that you died… 'cause it was like, I didn't even get the chance to say I was sorry for being mean to you when we first met…"

Still holding his hands, she began to swing the pair absentmindedly, glancing casually into his eyes as she spoke, earnest guilt evident in her dark brown orbs; Kenji sighed as a bitter grin of irony captured his lips, "Interesting how this sudden meeting of ours resembles that incident quite a bit, as I am sure that you would agree it has not left a more…fond impression on either party…"

All of a sudden, the situation at hand struck her senses and she stumbled back, looking ashamed as released his hands and moved her arms up to hug herself when her body began to shiver from the reminder of what she had recently suffered.  "Nope, it sure hasn't… you're totally right about that…  Heck, I guess maybe we were meant to hate each other, like be eternal enemies or something…"

"Are you speaking of fate, Uriko?  Certain events planned out by a higher, invisible deity while the rest of us inferior earth-bound creatures are manipulated as puppets on strings?  Hrmp… you believe in that then, for I personally find the concept to be gibberish."

"Okay, whatever, that's your choice…  But I wanna know something, now that I've told you about your past self, what do you believe in?  Do you see yourself, or even me, any differently at all?"  The tentative speaker wrung her hands in a conscious act of apprehension as she awaited his reply; she was hoping to get through to him before they continued further into the deal and dug their hole of animosity even deeper, too late to retreat into a safe zone.

He glanced away almost forlornly, far off into the distance, contemplating his response as the girl patiently stood by; after a few long moments dragged on, he spoke, "I will admit that you have sparked my curiosity, but from what you have told me, there truly is little to be gained on either side, so change of heart is unnecessary - after all, why should a story of the past affect this present or my future?  I find myself a bit intrigued with this information that you have just bestowed upon me, Uriko, but… I advise you to let go of that hope you are currently clinging to, for I am not the Kenji Ohgami you once knew."

Uriko shook her head furiously in disagreement and fired back, "Whatever happens, you're Kenji, darn it!  He's still in there somewhere; you're just shoving him down 'cause you're scared to accept a life that's so different from the one you're living right now!  Geez, the way you lived back then was a heck of a lot better than what you're doing now…"  She paused briefly to consider the oddities of their current relationship; "I have no idea why, but Alice said she thought Kenji and I would like each other or something, but I'm sure you'd agree with me that you and I really can't hate each other anymore than we do now…  But I don't get it, why haven't you made any moves that… that really show your hatred of me, Kenji?"

His amber eyes betrayed impatience as a scoff noised from him and he answered with a twinge of irritation in his voice, "So I must repeat myself once again?  You are nothing more than my toy, Uriko Nonomura - you currently serve no other purpose to amuse me while I am stationed here."

"Pssh!  Sorry to break it to ya, but I'm not anyone's toy, especially not _yours_.  You can't make me do anything I don't wanna do…"  Even as she proclaimed this, the girl stepped back a bit uncertainly, particularly unsure of her fiercely-insisted statement when she remembered he had taken advantage of her vulnerability by the two kisses he had forced upon her just days ago.  "Hrmp… I know that you're Kenji and I feel sorry for whatever weird thing that happened to make you this way and all, but you don't wanna try and change, so I still think you're a huge creep and I'll always be a better person than you."

The ninja laughed freely at this and repeated, "'A better person', hmm?  You truly have odd humor; what sort of inane joke are you playing at?  Are you honestly assuming that I care about this morality you are basing my person upon?  I torture victims for show, little girl… that should tell you all that you need to know."

"Actually… I think you torture your victims 'cause that smelly Busuzima tells you what to do, and you follow him blindly," Uriko confided blandly, now eliciting whatever came to mind first while staring intensely into his eyes, "Sure, you seem to be okay now, but later on, you'll realize all the bad things you did and hate yourself for it; you'll be tormented by memories of people screaming pain and suffering at your hands…  Oh, poor you, Kenji… you're probably gonna die a horrible, lonely way by committing suicide…"  He scowled out loud, unable to hide the anger that her statement brought, but she imitated the smirk that he had perfected from practicing on her so many times and pressed onward, "Gosh, you're just running from the truth, you know that?  Scared to face reality, I guess… heck, you've got such a horrible case of denial that it's almost funny…"

Infuriated that he had much lost all power in this encounter, Kenji narrowed his eyes and bit off darkly, "Perhaps a fresh dose of your own blood would do well to wipe that smug look off of your face, you foolish, blubbering child…"

"Hrmp!  I hope you know that I'm getting used to your threats, 'cause they're really nothing new."  Finished with that retort, she sighed a bit out of pity and willingly confessed, "Wow, I seriously feel sad for you, Kenji… you could've done so much better, but you reduced yourself to being nothing more than a whimpering dog for the ZLF."

The livid assassin growled and began to stalk towards her slowly, threat clearly evident in his intent, but to his surprise, the girl stayed in her position despite his advance, though she inwardly prepared herself to evade an attack should he execute one.  "Hm, what're ya doing there, Kenji?  Coming to vent out your rage the same way that only crazy and mindless people do?"

"I would love to accept your invite, Uriko Nonomura," but he stopped less than a foot before her and smiled slightly, bitterness in his expression, "But no, I think I shall save that for our little contest; judging by your previous shows of enthusiasm, it is safe to presume that you are probably looking forward to our remaining battles just as, if not more, than I am."

She had to confess, "W-well, maybe not today… but after I'm done healing from those wounds you gave me, I'll be totally ready to go."

"Being injured is a part of this game, little girl, and you should have known that all along," he chided.

The sixteen-year-old youth rolled her eyes at him; "Duh, of course I know that!  But I wanna make sure you know I'm not scared of you or your dumb threats. If I ever cry, it'll be 'cause of something dumb that I did, and not caused by you, you got that?  Whatever I do, I'll choose to do it myself; you have no influence over me."

"Hah, such bold proclamations are simple when things are easy… do you not agree with me, Uriko Nonomura?  After all, you must admit that it is in times of danger, threatening adversity, when our will is then truly tested, and so far, you have not shown anything that I deemed to be impressive…"  As his voice lowered to a whisper to enforce the full effects of his words on her, he stepped closer to his captive and tipped his head in slowly, capturing her eyes and smiling wickedly when she squirmed a bit and sought to avert her gaze away.

"Th-there's nothing wrong with my will…" she said softly, admittedly a little stung by the truth in his statement, "At least I know who I am; you're the one that has a messed-up mind, and heck, you don't even remember your past…  Sorry to say this, but I gotta admit, you're pretty pathetic, Kenji."

"And you are a naïve fool, bound to the teachings of normalcy, unwilling to see dire situations through your own two eyes, adamantly refusing to do anything outside of what is accepted; how is that not more pathetic than my own case?"  Kenji smirked when unease was plastered all over her facial features, and to further her discomfort, he raised a hand toward her face, slowly stroking her cheek as a false show of concern and affection while continuing with a question, "Tell me the truth, Uriko…  Are you ashamed of your zoanthrope nature, of the very genes that make you who you are?  Just how many humans have you revealed your true nature to?"

Taken back by his inquiry, she ignored the first remark and was only able to offer one plausible reply, though her reason came out in a bit of a stutter, "N-no, of course I'm not ashamed; it's just that, well… my sister doesn't want me to morph 'cause she thinks I'd only use to fight, and she's right.  I sure don't have a reason to be in beast form unless I'm in battle - and hey, I haven't even seen you morph yet, Kenji, so you really shouldn't talk…"

Although he laughed just then, his eyes were accusing; "That is not my point.  You failed to deny hiding the fact that you are a zoanthrope; you treat such a unique ability as if it were a curse, and betray your very person each and every day that you live, denying the power simply to be accepted and avoid any inconveniences or conflicts it may bring."

"I-I don't… that's not true… just because I don't go walking down the street announcing my powers to everyone doesn't mean that I'm ashamed of being a zoanthrope…"  She faltered and his grin widened, but then she quickly gathered herself and retorted, "You're probably arrogant enough do that though, just to see people's horrified expressions, since you really like to flaunt your power and all…  Geez, Kenji, you're just a sick, twisted sadist, in case you hadn't noticed that about yourself."

The ninja swept into a low bow as though praised with the most wonderful of compliments and replied snidely, "Thank you for gracing me with your support, Uriko Nonomura…"

Annoyed, Uriko delivered a small slap to his forehead before immediately turning to walk away, done with the frustrating conversation, rapidly retreating from his loud mocking laughter that suddenly ensued, but she just sighed and shook her head.  Admittedly a bit saddened by the loss of a boy she hardly even knew, she thought silently to herself, _Gosh, he's really changed, and not for the better… I'd rather have the shy and quiet Kenji back…_


	20. Perils Of Insomnia

_Special thanks to Andrew Glasco for once again assisting me with his generous ideas; he deserves a medal!_

**Chapter 20**

**Perils Of Insomnia**

That same night, stretching into the darkest hour, the feline zoanthrope tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep due to her mind's activeness on everything that had occurred earlier in the day, especially regarding the revelation of a young man she thought to be dead. After futilely trying to lull herself into a subconscious state, she finally opened her eyes and sat up, irritation clearly on her face as she casually glanced around the room, looking for something to occupy herself with until she eventually grew tired. Ending the scouring journey, Uriko peered down at the slumbering ninja beside her, and she continued to appear annoyed, but then she caught sight of the healing scar on his cheek and the corresponding memory with that sobered her immediately. A pang of guilt hit her suddenly and her face scrunched up as she thought; _if I knew that he was Kenji, would I've hurt him still? Boy, I still can't believe he's actually alive – and changed so much – I wonder if Alice, or even Yugo, had any idea that Kenji didn't die three years ago…_

Being in a subconscious state, Kenji had no reaction to her stare, and remained lied down in his stationary position with both arms against his sides as usual, although with such rigid stiffness of his posture, what an uncomfortable way to sleep it must be.  He appeared uncharacteristically peaceful, a sharp contrast to the cruel and arrogant personality he held while awake; Uriko could almost pretend that he was human instead of an inane assassin that constantly threatened her life, but she refused to be disillusioned.  After she shook herself out of the trance, the girl slowly slid off the bed, careful not to move too much that it would arouse the ninja to awareness, and then she made her way around with her eyes on the door leading out of the cottage, a firm decision in mind.  But as she walked by him, she was unable to resist looking back briefly with another guilty look on her face, since she felt bad for striking that scar on his face, despite what he had done to her person – after all, even though he would never admit it, her captor must be currently confused, so she had compassion for him.

_Oh, Kenji... just what the heck happened to you that made you this way…?_  Her expression turned remorseful at the silent inquiry, and then when a sudden impulse grabbed her, she succumbed to it, softly padding over to the seventeen-year-old and leaning down next to his resting form.  Wondering if he still felt pain from the wound, Uriko cast sympathy-filled eyes down at the serene adversary and studied him for a good few minutes, marveling at how much he had changed since the last time they met at their young tender age.  The brunette had not been lying when she confessed earlier that she thought him to be cute at thirteen, despite how adamantly she insisted to her older sister how strange he was, and that the two would never get along, no matter what.  The blanket was partially off his form, and the small remainder still clinging to his body hung around his legs – she would have to admit with slight embarrassment that she indeed often hogged the covers at night and deprived him of the warmth.

The youth emitted a barely-audible sigh that held a twinge of admiration when she took in his new looks; puberty had been very nice to Kenji in the past three years, rewarding him considerable height that allowed him to stand a few inches taller than his captive.  For her ethnicity and gender, Uriko herself was slightly above average at five-four, but she still felt short, and hated her frame being so small and petite, even though those attributes had gotten her much attention, captured quite the wandering eye amongst guys.  Her bosom was nowhere nearly as large as that of Alan Gado's wife, the voluptuous former model Jenny, but apparently many members of the opposite sex had no problem with the younger girl's own size, if the numerous times she had been asked out offered any indication.  The auburn- haired teenager was fine with her looks, fully aware that her hour-glass figure filled out nicely with her slender waist and the generous curves of her hips, as those aspects of her body thankfully had the right proportions.

Reverting her attention back to the ninja, curious dark brown eyes scoured over his body, absorbing the obvious knowledge of the immense strength that he possessed, especially by the way the biceps of his arms bulged with intense training he must have endured.  His gi was skintight and left little to the imagination; she could clearly make out the muscles of his lean chest, and found herself blushing slightly when a thought suddenly came to her, wondering how it would feel to have those hard pectorals pressed against her own softer body.  Squeaking a bit at where her mind had just wandered, Uriko reached over her shoulder to retrieve her braid and tugged on the end of the length in an absentminded attempt to distract herself, although she continued to look at Kenji.  Quickly moving along, her gaze traveled up to his face, and before she could become forlorn at acknowledging his scar, she peered at his overall features and had to admit silently that he was very cute, handsome, even; but of course, she would never tell him this…

Now the female fighter forced herself to own up to her actions and focused her eyes on his visible injury, wincing immediately because she knew full well that she herself had inflicted it upon him, and her compassionate side still felt direly guilty for striking him.  Sighing a bit remorsefully, Uriko tentatively reached her hand out to touch the healing scab, and true to her consideration, the tips of her fingers just barely grazed his skin, but even upon such light contact, the ever-wary assassin's eyes shot open instantly.  She did not seem to be aware of it, however, as the younger youth had began to stroke the scar very gently, quite surprised and ignorant to the fact that such a small weapon as the ninja star projectile could cause this deep and long-lasting of a wound.  Perhaps it was because of possibilities like this that Alice had consistently refused to let the younger Nonomura sibling participate in the resistance group, though how ironic that protection made her the Kenpo student so weak, susceptible to this kidnapping…

Upon the sudden awakening, his first instinct was to jerk an arm out and grab the curious explorer, and yet Kenji found her touch to be tender, maybe even a little... soothing... so with that, his logic managed to overcome his initial reaction, and thankfully, it also allowed him to relax his muscles and inquire calmly, "...What are you doing?"

With a guilty expression on her face and the blush of embarrassment coloring her cheeks, the sixteen-year-old immediately jerked her hand back and turned her head away, unwilling to meet his eyes and succumb to those piercing amber orbs.  "U-um, you had a bug on your face…"  _Yup, that sure sounded convincing… geez…_

"Oh... really, now?" Obviously unconvinced, a slight smirk formed over his lips as the ninja quickly rose to sit on his posterior, all the while intently focusing attention on his young captive, inwardly wondering why she had been touching him during his slumber.  Although he was admittedly attracted to Uriko, he seriously doubted that she returned that aspect, which made her action very odd and just confused him even more, in addition to the news of his past that she had revealed earlier in the daytime hours.  Wanting to know where it was that she had so gently stroked him before, Kenji reached a hand up and grazed the exact same spot, realizing instantly that the area happened to be the deep scar that stubbornly stayed etched into his skin from being inflicted quite a while ago.  He frowned a bit and asked quietly, "I doubt that you need reminding, Uriko… but this gash was caused by you on a certain day you probably would rather discard forever and forget the unfortunate occurrences.  …So why are you fawning over it now?"

The abashed brunette felt a little ashamed for what she had done - despite that it spawned from kindness – but the way that he always managed to make his biting words sound so brutally accusing, she honestly did not know how else to respond.  "Hey, I… I wasn't that interested in it!  Well… I guess I gotta admit that I was actually just thinking how great that thing suited you, such a hideous scar on an ugly and horrible person like you and all…"

Unsure of what more to say, she stood up and turned her back, walking away and heading straight for the door, this time intending to cram down the tiniest bit of sympathy she had for him and make it outside without any further distractions.  The assassin was surprised to find himself slightly annoyed with her insult, but he did nothing to convey that emotion and just watched the girl silently; curiosity gripped a strong hold on him when he realized she wanted to leave the cottage.  Eyes narrowing slightly, Kenji easily slid out from underneath the blanket and planted his feet on the floor while inwardly preparing himself to dash forward if necessary, should words alone not stop his captive in her actions.  Because she kept walking, oblivious to his reaction, he decided to verbalize his displeasure and before she could step over the threshold, his voice stopped her; "It is currently the middle of the night. Where do you think you are going?"

She sighed in exasperation but reached the door anyway, grasping the knob to indicate that she was leaving without giving him any further explanation, though she did reply candidly, ignoring his question, "I know what time it is, Kenji… I'm not blind, ya know."

"Your training will suffer if your body lacks sleep, little girl.  Are you begging to lose in our next match?"  But that excuse sounded weak even to him as he folded his arms, trying to regain control of the situation by appearing condescending, though the younger youth just shrugged and stepped outside, despite only wearing socks, leaving the ninja alone in the cottage.

        As Uriko opened her arms and breathed in the cool night air, welcoming the freedom of not being confined in the same location as the past week, the silent killer quickly donned his usual pair of black tabi before following his captive, all the while eyeing her suspiciously.  He still truly did not understand why she did what had been done just minutes ago, but now that they were both awake, he found no qualm in following her; in fact, he felt that it was his right to know where she was going.  However, underlying all that, her action did surprise him, because as rash as she had constantly proven herself to be, the petite cat zoanthrope seemed to also be willingly restrained to a routine, and a midnight stroll was never included.  Even Kenji was admittedly not usually up this time of night, although there had been a couple of rare occasions in the past where his mission required him to scour around outside at an hour even later than this present one.

Hearing footfalls behind her, the auburn-haired youth rolled her eyes at his typical behavior, but decided not to comment, as she felt so vibrant and awake, even despite the hour, and emphasized her energy by flipping forward for fun, landing perfectly on her feet.  This earned her a curious look from the ninja, who was still standing a couple yards back, one eyebrow quirked in slight curiosity and a twinge of annoyance at her blatant show of childish playfulness, although he said nothing to indicate those feelings.  After a few minutes of acknowledging his presence, Uriko felt unease creep into her body at the uncomfortable quiet, so then she suddenly took off running forward, sprinting into the forest, hidden by the trees as she left Kenji behind.  His eyes involuntarily widened a bit from the unexpected move, but he hastily got over that and immediately dashed after the girl, listening intently for her soft steps while grinning a tad to himself, rather amused by this show, even mysterious as it was.  _If you would like to be chased, dear cat, I shall very willingly oblige…_

The aforementioned feline zoanthrope easily detected rustling behind her and instantly knew that he had decided follow where she was going, and thus he gave into the unspoken challenge of chasing after his captive, but in a different situation this time.  She giggled a little at that though, rather confident that she could lose her pursuer with little problem, since she was naturally fast, although unknown to her since she had forgotten, the girl had more advantage in the speedy execution of attacks than in running.  Despite her preference of safety in the light-filled morning hours, Uriko surprisingly felt comforted by the night and its overwhelming darkness, most likely due to the fact that she was blessed shrouded in secrecy, even from the ninja.  The pace of her sprint increased just then to the will of the owner, and she closed her eyes to become fully embraced by the cool wind rushing at her face, while Kenji doggedly continued trailing her, used to the cover of night thanks to his unique line of work.

Becoming tired over time, the brunette stopped after a while, panting from effort as she slowly glanced about the place and took in her new surroundings - apparently, her jog had ended in a small clearing, with darkness always blatantly lingering over the setting.  Fine with the lack of lighting, she tucked her hands behind her back in a slightly childish, yet innocent manner, and then walked around as she waited for the ninja to catch up to her, inwardly planning to toy with him just a little, small revenge, really.  After all, he had constantly played with her mind, so she felt that her would-be-actions were justified; the object involving her intentions appeared at that moment, nearly running into Uriko, but he did barely manage to stop short of that.  He tried to hide his own slightly uneven breathing from the fast-paced run by way of coughing once before inhaling sharply, inwardly willing his body to relax, and once he regained complete control over himself, he could comment on the events that had just unfolded.

Kenji soon voiced casually, "Hmm… this is a rather curious and unexpected action from you.  I find myself thinking this to be a bit intriguing, as a matter of fact… do you truly feel the need for exercise at this time of night rather than taking advantage of your daylight hours, little girl?"

For once not showing any unease at being so close to such a dangerous entity, Uriko merely gave him a sweet smile and bent her upper body forward to peer at the slightly-older teenager, her eyes bright but concealing a mischievous sparkle.  "Hey, what'cha doing out here following me, huh?  Gee, I thought you didn't give a care about what I was doing and would've gone back to sleep, Kenji…"

"…Well," his rather uneasy pause was clearly evident, as the ninja himself did not even have an answer that pleased his own ears, so he just answered her crisply, "Hrmp, not that I feel any need to explain myself to you… but I simply felt obliged to follow my prey, dear kitten."

She expected some sort of answer like that, but did not allow it to deter her current cheeriness; suddenly feeling impish, however, the so-called prey delivered a quick poke to his nose before turning to run off, once again leaving him a little bewildered.  Her taunting words faded with each passing step; "C'mon, Kenji!  Catch me if you can, Mr. Mighty Ninja…!"

"Tch!"  The seventeen-year-old furrowed his eyebrows in a brief show of irritation at her tantalizing challenge, but nevertheless, he obliged of his own will and dashed after her, half wondering why he continued to pursue such a foolishly playful little girl.  A larger portion of his mentality justified his action with her taunt, though he did not really buy his own reasons; he thought he had his young prey thoroughly figured out, but apparently, she harbored a few surprises inside yet to be discovered.  However, the reserved assassin was used to secrets of his victims being hidden from him, so he truly had no problem in applying his perceptive nature to assist in delving into her person, completely confident that he would soon find out all that he needed to know about her.  Uriko constantly brought great amusement to the dominant captor, and he felt a sense of gratitude toward his generous master for allowing him to pleasure of taking on this assignment, one that he so enjoyed even more than the majority of his previous tasks.

Meanwhile, the teenage brunette honestly just wanted to have fun for one of those rare instances since she had been kidnapped, while also desiring to discover if the ninja possessed any human attributes, for the essence of the former Kenji might still be inside.  It was too soon to tell at the current moment though, as his decision to participate in her little game of hide-and-seek could have been spawned from a liking to chase his victims, especially considering his strange need to hold so much power over her.  Shaking off that ominous possibility, Uriko kept running until she arrived at the lake, and then after a few seconds of admiring the beautiful scenery that she loved so much, she ducked behind her usual changing-tree to wait for her pursuer to emerge.  A short period passed before he agilely breezed by the entrance, immediately slowing to a stop as he looked around, his light amber eyes avidly seeking her slender form, his mind unable to conceive how she had suddenly gained such a large boost of speed.

The playful girl giggled silently as she peeked out to look at him, surprisingly finding his display of confusion a little cute, and then she bent down to pick up a small pebble, quickly flinging it at his back before sprinting over to hide behind another tree.  The tiny projectile connected and he whirled around, but even though he too had speed on his side, he still missed her, and was only able to hearing her retreating footfalls, slightly annoyed that he could not pinpoint exactly where she had gone.  Unknown to him, Uriko beamed a cheeky smile and made sure he was looking away before repeating the process of chucking another measly-sized rock at him, this one hitting his side, and just as he pivoted to locate her, she darted to hide behind a bush rather close to his position.  While an inner voice berated him for not finding her by now, Kenji growled quietly in response and began to pursue the younger youth more intently, his senses fully alert and straining to detect each and every possible noise she could make.

"Where are you, my little kitten…?"  He breathed aloud in hopes of provoking her into replying, knowing full well that his emotional captive felt uneasy in regards to his taunting petnames for her and just might fall to his little trap, but to his surprise, silence sustained.  As usual, Uriko felt a twinge of an identifiable emotion tickle her inside, but she tossed it aside and instead sniggered into her palm, calming herself down before she lifted her head slightly and noticed his distance to the lake, which was rather close.  She grinned when a naughty thought suddenly crossed her mind, and after carefully watching his face turn in an opposite direction, the speedy girl jumped over the bush and dashed straight at Kenji, her hands thrusting out to push him forcefully.  He instantly whipped around to face her upon hearing footsteps, but it was too late as her palms slammed into him, and he soon found himself losing balance, falling back into the cold water as she had fully intended for him to land.

"Hehehe!"  She could not resist laughing at his submission, not even when the sopping wet ninja emerged a second later, coughing a little from the chill but his eyes stayed trained on her figure, especially when she walked over him with an innocent look.  "Taking a bath so late, Kenji?  Tsk, tsk, you oughta be careful; you just might catch a cold, ya know…"

He blinked a few times in shock before a bit of embarrassment assaulted him, and, of course, being his current person, that emotion quickly changed to anger, but fortunately for Uriko, he felt rather stupid in the moment and was unsure of what to say.  The dark-haired ninja settled for a dangerous growl instead, but it hardly fazed the girl, since she was rather determined not to let him spoil her fun, and she just continued teasing him, "Aww, what's wrong, Kenji?  What're you getting all mad for?  It's just a little water… but I sure wouldn't wanna be in there at this time myself though, heehee.  Are you gonna go back to the cabin now and dry off?"

Kenji frowned deeply and his light orbs conveyed anger, although his usual domineering appearance was hampered by his involuntary shivering, thus taking away what power he could have executed to tamper with her fears.  "Hah…!  If you truly believe that something as simple and minor like this will drive me off so easily, then allow me to inform you of the incorrect conjecture, little girl…"

"Driving you off?"  She repeated while pointing at herself in response to his accusation, a wide, innocent look in her eyes as the girl inwardly giggled at his shivering; perhaps he was human after all, and it sure seemed that way due to his reaction to the cold waters.  "Moi?  Hey, I'm just trying to show you that I care about your… poor freezing self, that's all, teehee…"

"Yes… I am thoroughly sure that you feel so concerned about me, especially judging by your actions, little girl."  With a casual grunt, he ran a hand through his wet hair a few times, and then, on a whim, he flipped the water on his palms at her face, smirking a bit when she was startled and jumped back from being forced to experience the icy liquid as he had.

"Aw, come on!"  The feline zoanthrope whined slightly as she wiped the water off of her face with the back of her hand, and in doing so, she unconsciously succumbed to her animal counterpart's dislike of being sprayed, even despite her own adoration of swimming.  "That was mean of ya, Kenji…!  Better watch out if you're going to leave the lake now, 'cause I just might wanna throw you back in!"

His eyes narrowed and took on a dark light; coughing a little once again, he growled under his breath, though still loud enough to be heard, "I advise **you** to be weary, my precious little kitten, for you are truly starting to get on my nerves, and should you actually carry out such a threat, I doubt you would like what sort of reprisal I have in mind as response…"

"Hey, don't be such a spoilsport, Kenji!  It's too bad that you never had fun before… I'm just trying to show you and let you see what fun is like!"  While she was speaking, she had tilted her head to the side in a cute and innocent gesture, as usual retaining her role as the entity of childish naiveté, but effectively remaining polar opposite to what the other bystander portrayed.

Still shivering just a little, though he was desperately trying to kill that involuntary action of his treacherous body, the cobalt-haired ninja kept his intense gaze on his younger captive, thinking of a way to unnerve her current display of overconfidence.  "So… you think that this is all in good fun, you say?"

Just as she nodded in response, he suddenly grabbed her forearms and tugged hard, trying to pull the girl into the lake as well; caught by a surprise, she was only able to yell out her shock before her balance easily gave away and she toppled right in.  Uriko gasped from the dual effects of her lower body quickly sinking underneath the surface, initially becoming stunned by the bitterly icy temperature, and also her upper portion slamming into Kenji's chest, rendering her short of breath for a few seconds.  After regaining her composure, she realized her close position with the ninja and immediately blushed a little before taking action by laying her palms flat against the hard muscles of his pectorals, intending to push off from him and escape the uneasy proximity.  To her surprise, the seventeen-year-old allowed her to leave, and as a matter of fact, she spied a small grin playing about his lips and avidly wondered what he had to smile about; this was twice now that he visibly displayed actual human emotions…

"G-geez… I wish you told me you were gonna do that…" she pouted a bit as her body began to quiver from the wet chill easily creeping through the barrier of her thin nightshirt and shorts, though this made her understand why he had been shivering so much earlier.

He grinned slightly but admitted earnestly, "What a coincidence that I feel the same way, dear kitten…  But then again, I feel that your agitation cannot truly be justified, for do you recall offering me a warning before you pushed me in here?"

Uriko was unable to deny the truth in that statement, but unwilling to get sucked into his little guilt ploy, she merely shrugged and danced a little away from him, her arms flailing about the air freely in a blatant show of her carefree attitude, walking deeper into the water until the surface was at her waist.  "Well… honestly, I sure am surprised that you didn't see me earlier, Kenji.  I mean, I was only running out every two minutes!  I guess this means I'm faster than you, teehee…"

"Hrmp… very well then, I suppose that I will grant you the praise of having eluded me… but avoid becoming overly confident from just one time of success, little girl."  He ran a hand through his wet hair once more, slicking it back, trying to lay the midnight blue bangs flat against his head, but those stubborn tresses just bounced back up and continued flirting with the elusive wind, so after several failed attempts, he finally relented.

"Whatever!  I think you just don't wanna admit that my speed can get me out of anything!"  The female fighter teased playfully as she whirled around to face him briefly before her body descended upon the surface of the water, her arms swirling about as she began to backstroke, trying to warm herself up before the iciness took full control.

Taking an interested note in her action just now, Kenji allowed a smirk to form over his lips as he murmured, "Perhaps… but if you are presented with a situation in which speed is unable to serve as your savior, what would you do then, Uriko…?"

She quirked one eyebrow in curiosity, wondering why he chose this moment to use her lone name, just as he had in their conversation earlier that afternoon, but did not say anything because she doubted he would give her a straight answer anyway.  Her silence was surprisingly perturbing to him, so on impulse, the ninja stealthily ducked beneath the surface when he felt sure that she had relaxed too much in her current state, and quickly swam over toward the girl until he was right underneath her.  Using his accurate precision to ensure that his position would be one that he wanted, Kenji abruptly erupted to the surface and hastily snaked his arms around her waist from behind while she shrieked softly in surprise and jumped slightly.  A broad grin stretched his lips as he uttered into her ear, tickling her sensitive smooth skin with his hot breath while his words were a tantalizing whisper; "Hmm, it seems that I have you right now, Uriko… unless you would like to stay in this position of your own will, go ahead and show me your plan of escape…"


	21. Stolen Moonlit Kisses

_Of course once again, special thanks to Andrew Glasco for his generous ideas on this chapter.  Things get a little steamy in this installment…_

**Chapter 21**

**Stolen Moonlit Kisses**

"Yeep!"  Abruptly shaken out of her swim, the younger youth flailed her arms helplessly for a bit before she finally realized that she was being held by a warm length behind her, and the sudden embrace felt quite secure as well.  Red flush immediately spread over her cheeks when she acknowledged his presence, but the girl was inwardly very grateful that Kenji could not witness her current state of embarrassment, though he must have guessed her discomfort by the way he chuckled just then.  Very aware of their sudden intimacy due to his heated breath fanning upon her skin, she swallowed from a nervous lodge that had occupied her throat, and then attempted a weak laugh before grasping his forearms with her hands to try and open the lock.  In response, he merely pressed himself closer to Uriko, aligning their bodies together in a disturbingly perfect fit, causing her to release a small gasp at the action and frantically begin to pull at the restraints surrounding her waist, desperate to flee.

His obvious advantage in strength over the petite fighter allowed the ninja to avoid heeding to her pull, and he spoke again, murmuring softly into her ear, "You seem rather uneasy, Uriko… do you truly feel repulsed by my presence?  Hmm… I had presumed that this was all in 'good fun,' for you did say that yourself, after all…"

"Y-yeah, fun, that's what this is…" she stammered softly, and upon cleverly deciding not to answer his first question, she quickly thought up a plausible excuse and voiced that with a slight plea in her voice, "But you know… I-I'm, um… I'm getting, kinda cold now, so… can you let me go…?"

"You want me to release you…?"  Kenji breathed with a crisp laugh, earnestly amused at what she just said, and although he did not deny the bit of truth in that statement, he had a plausible, rather obvious solution to her problem.  "But then you would become even more frigid with the lack of body warmth…  We can warm each other this way, would you not agree that is true?"

The astonished girl coughed a little to try and hide her surprise at his silkily provocative implication; in addition to that, since when was he capable of such an emotion like playful teasing, especially considering his personality and background?  "Umm… gee, y-you're just kidding around, r-right, Kenji…?"

His arms tightened ever-so-slightly about her waist, tainted with an obvious air of possessiveness as usual due to his character, but to answer her timid question, he whispered into her ear enticingly, "Do I sound insincere, Uriko?  After all, countless times you have made it seem like I am incapable of participating in this casual act of teasing…"

Their close proximity and his vague, enigmatic words were making her skin tingle with strange feelings, while a lump of unease lodged itself in her throat, making Uriko confess aloud that she was a bit frightened at them, "What… what're trying to do to me…?  Okay, okay, I admit, it you're kinda, um, scaring me… just a little…!  Gosh, is that all you wanted to hear…?"

As she started to walk forward with strained effort, trying to tug her body loose from his hold, her captor followed each step stubbornly, determined not to give into her request, although his arms did loosen a little from the sudden movement.  "Curious, indeed…  You do seem to be allowing anxiety to reign over your emotions - and rather blatantly, I might add - yet, I am truly unable to fathom a reason why, for I imply no harm to you.  Please, tell me; in such a peaceful setting without the slightest hint of hostility lingering anywhere in the atmosphere, just what is there for you to be afraid of, my precious little kitten?"

"W-well… 'cause I-I'm really not sure what you want, so I have to keep making guesses, but… but with the stuff that you've done to me before, they make me think the worst…  I mean, it'd be nice if you told me, s-so… so I wouldn't be this… um, nervous," she relayed all of this with a bit of a stutter, amazing both parties with an unusual display of shyness.

"Your worries are a waste of effort, Uriko… I truly have no intention of hurting you at this present time.  So knowing that, you have absolutely nothing to fear… after all, you can see that my touch is tender, correct?"  He allowed one of his arms to be removed from her waist, raising it up to stroke her cheek with the back of his hand as if to accentuate the point, a rare air of gentleness about the action, implying that he was touching a lover instead of an enemy.

Nevertheless, Uriko found herself shivering from his light caress, as she was still in disbelief that he could actually express such a pleasuring sensation rather than his characteristic intentions of dealing her harsh pain whenever she displeased him.  Truly confused by this sudden strange behavior being expressed, a small whimper escaped her lips when she inquired tentatively, "Kenji… a-are you really not gonna hurt me…?"

He chuckled softly, allowing his captive to feel the light rippling of his muscles behind her; upon acknowledging her soft squeak of a reaction, he instantly realized his advantage over her, but surprisingly did not care about the factor in that current moment.  Despite the usual childish innocence that she often displayed and clung onto so fiercely, the ninja adamantly refused to believe that she had less experience than him when it came to the art of kissing, touching, and other aspects of that pleasuring sensation.  Kenji was honestly ignorant of the overall typical life of a teenager, but he did know that romance came with a physical side, one that he suddenly felt desired to explore, seeing as he liked holding the slender female in his arms and having her soft body so close to his.  "As assurance, I shall give you my word, dear Uriko, that I will not harm you while we are here; violence should be scorned when two are surrounded by the utmost form of serenity and cloaked underneath the veil of a thousand brilliantly shining sparks in the sky…"

She blinked in bewilderment at the statement; although she knew of his unique way of speaking, occasionally tinted with a slight touch of poetic connotations, he sounded almost romantic eliciting that line, but the girl did doubt that he truly meant it.  From the little verbal spats that they had gone through before, Uriko naturally presumed in the present time that he was just trying to toy with her mind again, wanting to absorb the dark energy of her discomfort and feed it to his sadistic pleasure.  Faking a huge yawn, she tried to casually remove his arms from her waist, but truthfully, her body was coming alive with prickling feelings and unbidden came a want to decipher this foreign presence, even despite her unease toward his gentle attitude.  "I-I, um… I feel really tired now!  I-it's so late after all, probably midnight already…  Gee, I'd sure like to head back to the cottage and go to sleep right about now, so Kenji, if you don't mind, I'd kinda like it if you'd, you know, let me go already…?"

A small smirk playing about his lips, Kenji relinquished his hold on her as the brunette pried at his arms and allowing the lengths to retract a bit, but instead of letting her go completely, he quickly grasped her hips within his hands and drew her warm, desirable body back to him.  "Hmm, your fatigue is a shame, and how interesting that it should transpire at such an inconvenient time… especially when we are enjoying ourselves here very much…"

"I-I think you're the only one having f-fun here, Kenji…  Oh p-please, let me go…" Uriko pleaded lowly, sounding almost ashamed with herself, as since his hands were very warm, almost burning to the touch on her hips, and with his body still in an intimate proximity behind her, she had to wonder what other intentions he had planned for her.

Unknown to the captive female, an unidentifiable gleam inhabited his eyes just then, obviously spawned from being pleased with her response, earnestly adoring the way her voice had sounded so meek and vulnerable in her begging; "Well… since you asked so politely, perhaps it is possible for that to be arranged, little kitten…"

The dark-haired ninja slowly slid one hand up her side, ascending over her shoulder, and finally stopped when it reached her throat, though even that smooth area was not his desired destination, as she soon found out with his next action.  He gently cupped her chin between his fingers, eliciting a small gasp of surprise from the girl, to which he chuckled in amusement, but then he shifted his captive toward him while his own head pivoted in the same direction as well.  However, once the younger youth realized what he wanted from her, she immediately resisted his movement and yanked her face away rather brusquely, effectively escaping his hold; she did not mean to react so violently, but was unsure of how else to get herself free.  Kenji felt rather annoyed at this, not only because she had fought off his small advance, but most of it was due to the fact that she refused to grant him such a simple request, and yet she demanded her freedom as if that could be given away so easily.

Fear was evident in her by the way that it shone in her dark pupils as a slightly frightened Uriko questioned with an edge of defiance in her voice, "H-hey, what the heck did you do that for?  I-I want you to let me go already, darn it!  Just… just what do you want from me, Kenji…?"

The dominant figure chuckled once at her proclamation, but did not answer verbally; disallowing himself to be deterred by her action, he instead dipped his head down and gently brushed his lips against the side of her neck in the form of a soft, feathery kiss.  The breathy contact, even brief as it was, made her heart flutter a bit, though she did jump from his light touch, honestly stunned by his action, and now she desperately wanted to leave his iron grip even more, voicing her suspicions, "D-don't do that again…!  Oh, I bet you're just trying to m-mess with my mind as usual, aren't you…?"

He parted only centimeters from her neck to whisper his response, "You are still afraid, I can tell… but why bother consuming your energy on such a worthless emotion?  Does this not feel good, my little kitten…?"  To emphasize his statement, Kenji placed another soft kiss upon her neck, this one only a tad higher than the previous, but as a slight change, his lips briefly teased her sensitive skin, ensuing a ticklish feeling in her that made the girl gasp softly, though she quickly squeaked to cover it up.

"N-no, this doesn't feel good at all!  It's really weird!  S-stop that…!"  She leaned her head forward in an attempt to try getting away from his reach, but to his credit of being stubborn, he securely kept her in his grasp, "Geez… wh-what's with you tonight…?  Why… why are you acting so s-strange?"

"Hmm, you feel rather warm to me, Uriko…  Surely you cannot still be cold…"  He whispered provocatively, leaned forward a bit before arching his head toward her ear as well, blowing his heated breath upon her skin, and then he allowed his tongue to slide out from his lips to softly lick her delicate lobe.  Needless to say, she was rather startled at this new sensation, so he took advantage of her momentary stun to graze her flesh with his teeth, sucking it lightly after a bit, direly curious to see how she would react, though he prepared himself for resistance.

Only half-involuntarily, her head lolled back a little to receive more attention as she closed her eyes and shivered from his action, feeding to his hunger even though her lips still uttered in weak protest, "H-hey, quit it, Kenji…!  I-I… I'm freezing in here…  H-heck, if I catch a cold, I-I'll spit on you…!"

He paused briefly to assure, "As I promised before, no harm will come to you…  I shall personally see to that, my precious little kitten…" after saying that, he licked her earlobe once more before arching forward further-still to dance his lips over her cheek, inwardly marveling at the feel of her smooth skin.

Her mind actively resisting his advance, Uriko outwardly struggled not to give into him, though on a whim, she wondered where he was pulling all of his little pet names from, and why he chose this moment now to tease her with them.  The second that she felt his mouth graze her cheek, she turned her head to the opposite side while her body shifted to allow her hands to splay across his chest, and she pushed against him frantically as she murmured softly, "D-don't call me that, Kenji…  I'm not your anything, so l-let me go…"

_That is correct, for you are not mine just yet, innocent young Uriko… but rest assured, I **will** win and have your life in my hands.  _He thought that with a rather cruel grin and continued holding his captive firmly, still not willing to give into her resistance; the ninja tipped his forehead against the side of her face, pressing into the soft smoothness of her skin as he whispered into her ear, "Though your words are elicited with force, I find your physical defiance rather half-hearted, Uriko…  How I do wonder why… would you like to explain it to me?"

She kept trying to put distance between the two teenagers by pushing at him with her hands, growing a little panicked when she started to feel heated from his fiery contact, and the girl definitely wanted to leave before he started getting bolder.  "That's 'cause… well, I guess I'll admit that you're just a little stronger than me, so it's kinda hard for me to get out… but trust me, I'm sure as heck t-trying to…!"

Kenji chuckled a bit, amused by her inner conflicting desire and blatant resentment toward him, and then he took a second to inhale her scent, feeling almost intoxicated by the delicious fragile fragrance of a young female, especially coming from the attractive one in his arms.  His eyes narrowed a little, causing him to lose focus just briefly, though his restraint remained adamant, continuing to hold Uriko in place despite her attempts to escape, and actually, he smirked when she released a shrill groan of annoyance.  Meanwhile, a strange desire was aroused within the pit of his stomach as time trickled by and although he had only experienced this with her and it admittedly confused him, the sensation felt very good, so he decided to submit and explore the foreign boundaries.  Feeding the need, the ninja said nothing in response to her earlier statement and arched his neck down; slowly closing his eyes, he once again took her delicate earlobe between his lips and began to softly nibble upon the sensitive area.

"Nngh…"  A small whimper involuntarily broke free from her lips as the younger youth tilted her head slightly toward Kenji, aiding his caress while her treacherous body relaxed with the new comforting sensation, and expressed what she was feeling by shivering.  There was a screaming voice in her mind that told her to keep trying to fight him off, but she felt the resolve weakening a bit; vivid nerves in her body was lit afire and she could even feel certain points poking the air, mostly from the cold, but partially due to the heated embrace.  She bit her lip as her hands grabbed his closest forearm with the intent to yank it away from her hips, hoping to get out before he realized her true reactions toward his touch, and Uriko almost managed to lurch his arm free of her from the force, but his iron grip endured nonetheless.  Scowling quietly under his breath, the dark-haired assassin quickly tightened his grasp on her and parted from the rounded lobe only for the purpose of muttering hotly into her ear, "Are you warm yet, Uriko, or shall I continue until you reach that desired state…?"

"N-no…!  I-it's seriously freezing in here!"  She shivered as she said that to emphasize her point, inwardly feeling all the more confused by his provocative actions; surely a cold-hearted figure like Kenji with such a corrupted lifestyle could not have normal teenage desires…

"Very well then, that is my cue to keep proceeding…" the ninja declared decisively, grinning with slightly sadistic pleasure at her response, and then lowered his head to reach her neck to catch a small patch of skin between his lips and suckled with moderate force.  His tongue occasionally flicked out over the quivering surface, making Uriko moan very softly, and that in turn caused her partner to register that she was indeed enjoying his tactics, so he licked over the same spot several times before softly blowing over it.  There was shame in her eyes at admitting that she found his touch to be rather pleasant, but nevertheless, she did allow a small sigh to elicit into the air at the feel of his ticklish breath while her hands subconsciously slid down to rest over his wrists.  Though not completely ignorant of passion both through experience and knowledge-wise, the bewildered girl still had yet to wander down that path to the very end, so she wondered innocently, _I… I feel so hot…  What's happening to me…?_

She tried convincing him one last time, her desperate voice holding a twinge of raw plea, "Oh gosh, I-I'm really tired now…  Please, let me go so I can go back to the cottage…  I… I don't wanna fall asleep here i-in the middle of the lake and… and freeze during the night or anything like that…"

"I will not allow that to happen to you, dear kitten…  But if you are truly fatigued right now, then rest your body on mine, and… allow yourself to enjoy this," although his whispered words were barely audible, the feline zoanthrope was still able to hear him, thanks to the acute level of one particular sense.

Focusing on the current task at hand, Kenji raised his head slightly to brush his lips against her ear, fully aware of the her sensitivity in that area, and then he gradually trailed the pair down along her cheek to her jaw line, kissing here and there with a slow, methodical sexuality.  Finding it hard to resist such gentle caresses, the girl allowed her eyes to slip closed; oh, how badly her body wanted to succumb to his pleasant touch, and despite the fact that he only given her a few pecks, it was his heated breath lingering over her skin that made her want to discover what else he could offer.  The triumphant ninja grinned a tad at the depletion and faltering of resistance, content in the knowledge that his captive was surely starting to give into him, and although he wanted her to respond to his advances in turn, he refused to be bothered with illusions.  But the intent participant certainly could settle for a certain union that the two young fighters had only experienced twice, and so with that in mind, he carefully edged toward her pursed and pouting mouth, quite eager to taste her soft pink lips once again.

The girl shifted her head weakly toward him, twin dark brown eyes hazy and cloudy with a mixture of emotions, just as confused and murky as her own mind felt, and to his pleasant surprise, there was no resistance from her this time.  In fact, her lips even pursed slightly in expectation - Kenji had set her tingling nerves on fire by way of his astonishingly gentle, softly erotic caresses, and not even all the water in the lake could extinguish the flames that ignited in her body.  The figure in question stared deeply into her bottomless pools for a moment, knowing full well that she would look directly back into his, and then he allowed his eyelids to slide down before he slowly leaned forward, completely depleting the distance by kissing her.  In correspondence, he felt an unfamiliar heat rush throughout his entire person, even despite the chill upon his skin from the cold water of the lake, and his grip on Uriko also tightened a bit, but because he had no fear of her fighting him now, the innocent action was spawned simply from instinct.

Although she usually paid attention to the ninja because she wanted insight on such an enigmatic figure, this time, the captive female barely noticed the desire in his dark eyes, as she was admittedly captive to the dazed state of her own mind.  The brunette sighed breathlessly into his mouth, feeling his lips moving gently over hers, surprising soft as a lover's touch even in light of their personal opposition; her body curled up against his reflexively, making the union closer and more intimate.  To further express her approval to his actions, her hand subconsciously slid up his arm and her fingers dug into his lean biceps, so in response, Kenji pressed himself into her slender form more fully, suddenly ridden with a familiar urge to deepen the kiss.  Mustering his courage, he parted his lips slowly, prompting his partner to do the same as he slicked his tongue forward and simultaneously allowed his hands to leave her hips, one encircling her waist while the other pressed into her back - although he was admittedly inexperienced, he learned and adapted very quickly to new situations.

Uriko shivered slightly from his tongue rubbing against hers, the wet and hot muscle slicking slowly over her passive one, and she moaned softly when the movement increased, picking up in pace and vigor, a firmer expression of his current intentions.  While her arms still clutched onto him, her nails making shallow marks in his skin from the tight hold, the girl felt herself leaning back into the open palm he had erected behind her as her head also drifted in that same direction, unknowingly allowing Kenji easier access to her full frontal area.  Taking very interested note in her action, the ninja began to absentmindedly trickle his fingers over her delicate spine, truly unable to deny how much he loved the feeling of her supply body so close in proximity to his own, and pressed against him this firmly nonetheless.  Giving into an inner need to explore her further, the dominant young man opted to distracting his partner with their heated kiss while the hand he had positioned at her waist furtively and gradually slid up, stopping only when he cupped her breast.

Her attention had indeed been averted as he intended, the girl becoming a little lightheaded from his sudden surge of aggression, feeling as if he were sucking the very life out of her body as his tongue made itself very comfortable in her mouth, playing with her moist insides to his leisure.  She did emit a small gasp when he had carefully palmed her breast, but a protest that arose to her lips died just as her hardened nipple eagerly peaked, silently begging to be touched, and of course, he was all too willing to oblige to that unspoken request.  Fire transferred from his heated form to dance across her skin when Kenji gently squeezed the soft mound underneath his hand, occasionally using his thumb to flick at the tight nub in the center, igniting hidden passions in Uriko that formerly laid dormant deep within.  When she mewed her content and squirmed a bit restlessly in response, also unconsciously pushing herself closer to her partner in the process, he allowed the slightest hint of a groan to escape his lips, sounding rather muffled due to the fact that the two were still kissing.

But even though the ninja enjoyed stroking the soft, delicate part, he inwardly hoped to arouse his partner more, knowing that the more she was, the less chance that she would resist him if he decided to further their embrace to the extent that his body desired.  His tongue continued its unpracticed dance with hers; complying with the owner's wishes in not wanting to pull away… he truly had no intentions of ending such a delicious encounter anytime soon, although in reality, he would never admit that out loud.  The foreign feelings were far better than he could have ever even imagined, and Kenji was, in a strange way, falling victim to his own trap, but he seemed to be ignorant of that fact, far more interested in the heated embrace he currently shared with the desirable female.  On the other hand, Uriko herself was actively ignoring the small protests that occasionally arose in her mind as she felt avidly curious about the fiery sensations surging through her veins at his touch, feeding her so much energy, and making her shiver with unfamiliar, but sharply acute pleasure…

Considering the way he had treated her before, the imprisoned female never would have guessed that he could be so utterly gentle, and actually caress her in a fashion that did not harbor the intent of harm, almost showing respect of her person for a rare time.  In addition to that, Uriko certainly had no qualms regarding the pleasure she was receiving; having only allowed one or two past boyfriends to touch her above the waist, this still came as a new sensation, and admittedly, a rather welcome one.  A small moan elicited breathlessly from her lips when he applied more pressure to her breast, now actively teasing her hardened nipple with his fingers, understanding that the area was sensitive, especially when she gave him that noised response.  Finally, as his body was desperately craving oxygen, Kenji reluctantly broke off the kiss, but remained close to his partner, breathing hotly upon her lips, honestly unsure of what to say for the first time since he had initiated the game, and although the young man felt slightly lightheaded, he craved her more than ever.

Still feeling dizzy from his powerful kiss, the girl blinked hazily, a sudden strange sense of loss hitting her with the parting of their lips, and her large chocolate-shaded eyes caught his amber orbs, her pair hazy with the same swirling emotions as his.  She was alerted of his desire when Kenji slightly shifted his position to fully align their bodies together, and with the new movement, a certain presence made itself physically noticeable by pressing against her lower belly, causing her to gasp in innocent wonder.  Such an earnest expression of her feelings made him impatient with need - feeling her this way over the thin clothing was rather pleasant, but when suddenly struck with the urge to feel her naked skin against his hands, he eagerly succumbed to it.  However, the ninja knew that he could not just idly expect Uriko to allow him more access, so he sought to daze her more, hoping that if placed in a high state of arousal, she would let him do as he pleased, and exploring her slender form was certainly high priority.

Equally intoxicated, the auburn-haired youth lifted her hand to press the back against her forehead, the intensity of the emotions exploding in her mind making it almost painful for her to concentrate, so she passively allowed her captor to take charge.  She whispered inaudible nonsense as she leaned her head down upon his shoulder, and believing that this meant the girl was completely submitting to him, Kenji smiled triumphantly as he reached both of his hands down to grasp the fabric of her shirt.  As his lips began to gently nip at her ear, he slipped one fugitive explorer beneath her thin attire and rubbed up her bare back slowly, inwardly pleased when she whimpered meekly from the contact and leaned a little more toward his nibbling caresses.  The warmth of his body was now solely concentrated in his fingers, invisible lightning shocking her senses with his heat traveling through her form, but the bare contact did startle Uriko a bit, though not strong enough to make her break away just yet.

When she did nothing to deter his movement, the young man allowed a partial grin to touch his lips, thinking that he had her entranced in his hands, and this of course, brought him great pleasure; he mused arrogantly before pressing onward, _I have won but one battle in our deal, and this girl is already mine…_


	22. Beneath The Surface

_Special dedication to Andrew Glasco for his ideas on this chapter; as for the rest of you, stop being so mean to Uriko for giving into Kenji!  You try getting kissed on the neck and ears by a hot ninja and not reacting…_

**Chapter 22**

**Beneath The Surface******

          Truly, Uriko had nothing more than innocent intentions when she ventured out earlier that night; the ninja awakening and chasing her through the forest, all over to the lake just happened to be an unexpected, though rather interesting bump in the road.  She certainly never guessed that the two would be locked in a heated embrace while submerged in the cool waters of the tranquil atmosphere, and kissing each other with such passion – surprisingly blatant on his behalf, while she was more hesitant in contrast.  In the current setting, the auburn-haired youth felt chilled by a sudden gust of cool night air, unsure of how she could possibly feel cold when a warm body was pressed so tightly against her slender frame, almost being absorbed into the overwhelming fire of her partner.  His flat fingertips tickled her smooth skin, making the girl almost want to giggle in delight, and as his tongue flicked at her earlobe, bringing her light pleasantry, she elicited another soft sigh, soothed by his touch despite her frantically-pounding heart.

In a rare show of his emotions, Kenji sighed a bit between nibbles, prodding the soft flap of skin with his tongue every now and then, while he slowly raised his hand, allowing the fabric of her upper attire to catch upon his wrist, the thin material slowly rising along with his soft upward caress over her bare skin.  He shifted back on his heels just a bit to put enough space between them to allow the front of her shirt to move in motion with the back, and only then did he break away from her earlobe, moving to raise the barrier over her head.  Never had the young ninja wanted something so much as he did now, which was to see the alluring female right before his eyes without a single veil shielding her enticing features from him, her lips pursed in that special cute, irresistible little pout of hers…  The only barrage preventing his task were the sleeves that still maintained in place over her arms, and just as he was trying to remove the article of clothing, Uriko shook her head slightly and shivered from the cold that suddenly met her naked flesh.

The cobalt-haired teenager frowned just a bit at her action, but when the girl tucked her face into the space between his neck and shoulder while one of her hands began to lightly trickle down his arm, the gruff expression quickly softened at the pleasant outcome.  Deciding to settle on a milder tactic for the time being, he inched his body around towards her front a bit more, trailing his head slowly back to hers, and placed another soft kiss upon her lips when he arrived there, allowing his amber eyes to flutter to a close once more.  One of his arms remained upon her bare back, her shirt tucked upon that wrist, lifting it as far as her upper abdomen, while his opposite hand slowly trickled from her back over to her side, dipping lower to glide upon her hip, cupping the smooth area possessively.  He was fully aware that Uriko would not willingly lay down for him as of that current moment, and inwardly wondered just how much patience he had before passion took a firm hold of him and physical actions followed to correspond with that desire…

The brunette earnestly adored his slow, almost timid caresses, thinking they were rather sweet and considerate, but still she ached inside and the braid of her long hair dipped lower into the water when she reared her head back to receive his next kisses.  Her free hand suddenly grabbed his wandering arm and the girl held it, feeling a bit stupid as she had no idea what action to take next; she was filled with desire but felt confused, not knowing exactly to ask from him, though she would be too embarrassed to do so anyway.  Easily taking control of the situation, Kenji kissed over her lips with several short, quick motions of his own, craving her all the more, and then furtively tipped the wrist of his exploring hand, gently grasping onto the wrist of her fugitive length.  He slowly pulled it towards him, guiding her open palm towards his chest, willing for her to give into the desire they both shared, finding it difficult to ignore the growing hunger burning low in his abdomen as the neglected part of his male anatomy demanded attention.

She allowed her hand to be placed over his chest, inwardly marveling at the sensation of his heart fiercely beating underneath her fingertips, and after a bit, started to tentatively dance over his strong muscles, not surprised that the contact seemed like bare skin.  Since his skintight ninja gi was a weak barrier by default, and the water had made everything thinner, allowing touch to be more direct, it made sense that she could feel each inch of his hard pectorals as the girl explored timidly, rather carefully.  His light pecking around her mouth made her giggle somewhat deliriously as she tilted her head to expose her neck; twin peaks tightened and ached, but she was unsure of how to solve that problem and merely concentrated on receiving the pleasuring heated kisses.  Taking the action as an invitation, Kenji was all too happy to oblige, and trailed his lips trailed down her cheek, passing her jaw, finally settling on her smooth neck, suckling softly once more upon her skin while his eyes suddenly narrowed into thin slits, proving that his sexual need for this desirable girl currently dominated him.

Satisfied that her hand was quite content to rest upon his chest, the ninja guided one hand down her arm, slowly delving toward her elbow, and his palm soon found her bare abdomen, the touch solidifying as he rubbed to one side, and then gradually retreating to the center.  Feeling a sudden need to look him in the eyes, the entranced Uriko leaned back a bit and peered at his face, surprised to see the usually-calm and reserved assassin appear so tense, plagued with a strong emotion that she could not identify.  It felt rather odd, but also almost assuring to witness the confusion that briefly flickered over his expression; so, she was not alone in the world of bewilderment after all – she deemed this silent admission from him as a strange form of comfort, actually.  Suddenly overwhelmed with tenderness when a partial smile grazed his lips just then, the mostly water-soaked brunette raised a hand to lightly tap the scar on his face once before timidly leaning forward to place a small, shy kiss on it.

Twin amber irises appeared stunned the instant her mouth had touched the wound upon his face, and Kenji was unable to hide the surprise in his expression as he tipped his head to look at his younger partner, honestly shocked that she had returned his affection in such a gentle, even rather apologetic way.  The movement of his hand ceased as well, honestly taken aback, though not unpleasantly so; Uriko merely looked back at him, feeling mystically disillusioned as if the two were shrouded in their own protective bubble, a truly private world.  She was unable to hide the slight tremor in her voice when she uttered his name, a mere whisper with baffled, but earnest longing, and her eyes closed partway from the drowsy daze as the girl gently pecked his healing scar again, her soft lips brushing his calloused skin.  He elicited a slightly shuddered sigh as she kissed him once more, inwardly growing comfortable with the unfamiliar feelings stirring within him, only with a mild disturbance in that he was unable to identify them, but it really did not matter at the moment.

"Uriko…" his hand upon her bare back resumed slowly rubbing along her skin as the intoxicated young man whispered her name in verbal reply, no longer feeling as though he was in complete control, a victim being ensnared by his own feelings and emotions.  Hearing the single word breathed from his lips sounding so forlorn, filled with such fiery yearning made the girl shiver, yet strangely, she felt uncomfortable in the current setting, but that was probably due to his obvious excitement pressed hard against her belly.   Even with passion clouding her senses, the sliver of reason remaining her mind admitted that she was not ready to reach a high level of intimacy, especially considering her partner of choice and the controlling situation they were presented with…  She glanced down from shyness at the brisk reminder and happened to notice her bodily reactions for the first time, both arms immediately moving to cover up her chest as Uriko backed away a bit, rather embarrassed that her responses had been so transparent.

The dark-haired ninja was honestly surprised to feel her try to back away in that moment; admittedly, he had nearly forgotten the situation -- him being her captor and she the kidnapped, and this return to reality made the passion in him die just slightly.  Though it apparently was not enough to be deterred from getting what he wanted as Kenji quickly regained his bearings after a bit and firmed his hold, advancing on the slender female once more rather than pulling her back towards him, desire still very evident in his eyes.  To accentuate his earlier point and prove to her that he truly meant to keep his word on not hurting her, he allowed the hand upon her abdomen to take one of hers, and raised it slowly to him, gently kissing her upturned palm when the destination was reached.  She gasped slightly at the action, thoroughly surprised at his consideration and that he would actually be seeking her understanding; his voice was soft as he uttered in assurance, "You are withdrawing… but why?  There is nothing to be ashamed of, Uriko…"

"I-I'm scared…" she confessed sheepishly, and moved his hand over to press it against her chest, directly over her heart so that he could hear the frantically pounding rhythm, while inwardly she wondered if he actually felt the slightest care toward her.  His caresses were enticing and beguiled the girl into thinking that he did, this Kenji that used to be so cold and shy, but when reminded of their opposed positions, she was forced to admit that the whole thing could be a deceptive plot to win her trust.  And yet, the brunette was admittedly attracted to this handsome young man in a strong physical manner, and wanted to keep on going, though she naturally felt ashamed about that rather than merely being embarrassed in regards to her reactions to his touch.  Sensing her weakness, he fought back the urge to smile and instead slowly moved his hand upward toward her back, allowing the thin shirt to fall down as he ran his fingers down the length of her hair, willingly delving into the water to seek out the tail of her silky braid.

The dominant captor frowned a tad at the negative connotation evident in her expression even as he whispered in return to her earlier admission, speaking truthfully, "My heart is pounding as well, but I made the choice not to fight these sensations, my precious little kitten…"

Uriko sighed rather fondly at the nickname he just used; she thought it was very strange that Kenji had this other side with so much caring and patience, especially since he had shown nothing but cruelty toward her, inconsiderate of her feelings or person.  Now she felt utterly confused by the recent revelation and wondered if she could ever able to look him in the eyes again without flinching… after all, the two were far too different and working out an alliance of any sort with one another was impossible, so whatever they shared would be deemed pointless.  With that in mind, she sniffled slightly at the harshness of reality and slowly lowered his hand, a small gasp escaping her lips when he accidentally brushed against her sensitive tip and after the girl squeaked a small noise, she frantically pushed his arm away.  Although the sixteen-year-old captive had been enticed by him and admitted to willingly giving into his touch, finding it rather hard to adamantly fight her attraction to the comely ninja, and those puzzling feelings that ignited when he teased her earlier, there was no future for them.

Slightly annoyed at her retreat but deciding not to comment on it, Kenji raised his hand once again, but this time it was to cup her cheek in his palm as he leaned in closely to speak directly to the brunette, his own thoughts slurring in his mind, "How is one supposed to tell what you are thinking unless you verbalize your thoughts aloud?  I have indeed accomplished many tasks in my life, but mind-reading is unfortunately not one of them, Uriko…"

"I… I'm not really thinking anything," the younger youth fibbed quietly as she backed away fully, disallowing him to witness the uncertainty currently plaguing her emotions with her face turned to the side while both of her hands clasped together against her chest over her heart, seeming as if she were praying.  "I just feel a little confused, th-that's all… I mean, we're still enemies, Kenji, and… and th-this won't change anything… will it…?  S-so we… we really shouldn't be doing… anything like this with each other…"

The irritated assassin frowned when she backed away, but upon noticing that her eyes were cloudy and trouble, he made no outward reaction, and fell silent for several long moments, unsure of a favorable answer to convince her, but finally spoke again, "You are correct… our roles have not changed as of this present moment - you remain who you are, and I am still my own person.  However… you should not have allowed that small factor to be a deterrence of enjoying this night, Uriko… you are merely denying what your body desires."

"De…sire?  N-no, my body… I mean, I-I don't… I don't want anything…" she denied weakly, regarding Kenji with a timid exterior as she crossed her arms over her chest, and turned away hastily, inwardly scared that he would find a way to get her real answer.

He shook his head, a glimmer of longing lingering in his deep amber eyes as he glanced her way; the impassioned young man had to restrain himself from lurching at the girl and taking what he wanted, as his own desires were painfully prominent due to the absence of her body.  Deciding to deplete that need quickly, he silently stalked over to her alluring form and once again wrapped his arms around her from behind, his touch uncharacteristically tender as he uttered provocatively into her ear, "My little kitten… admit the truth that you yourself find the claim to be more than just a bit of a fib.  There is no need for you to deny the pleasure that you felt…"

"I… um…" Uriko released a shrill breath as she felt herself beginning to lean back comfortably against his hard chest, but quickly managed to grasp a hold of her senses and shook her head, soon leaving the warmth of his arms thereafter, much to his disappointment.  "P-please don't touch me, Kenji…  I… I know that you're just using me…"

The young ninja frowned once more as he allowed his arms to fall to his sides in silent defeat, finally allowing her the desired space and wish of being left alone – it was the intensity of the conversation alone that restrained him from pursuing her once more.  Still, he persisted rather stubbornly, allowing the shadow of a small grin to tease his lips; "But does it not please you?  Can you feel your body respond as fervently as I do?  I will bring you new pleasure, Uriko… together, we can elevate to heights that you have never known before.  You see, for even though my hands can maim, they are undoubtedly capable of a tender… more gentle touch, and I can prove that without hesitation if you so desire."

She shuddered briefly at his far-too casual mention of slaying people so relentlessly and mercilessly; despite her amateur fighting skills, the Kenpo learner adamantly refused to become one of his unfortunate victims in the future.  "You… I remember you calling me a 'whore' earlier," anger flickered in her eyes for just a second at that mention, but it quickly disappeared when she continued speaking, "But you've gotta admit that you were wrong!  I… these feelings are really new to me, and they're actually kinda scary…  If… if all you want is a bed partner, then I think you'd better look somewhere else 'cause I'm not gonna be used for… for your sick perverted pleasures…"

He eyed her evenly, showing no sign of embarrassment or remorse in any way, though his tone was surprisingly gentle and assuring when he complied, "Yes, I will admit that although your body says what your tongue does not, I did misjudge… the amount of experience you have had, but what you fail to realize, little kitten, is that these feelings are foreign to me as well, so if you think yourself to be the only virginal party, you are incorrect…"

Suspicion was evident in her expression; "What…?  Y-you've gotta be lying…  I've had a couple of boyfriends that didn't kiss as well-um, I mean, that kinda sucked at kissing, worse than you did!"  She paused momentarily to blush a bit from the near-slip and gathered her thoughts together before continuing, "Yeah, I think you've definitely had some experience…  I don't believe that you've… that you've never taken a girl to bed before."

"I have already given you my answer, and I stick by it, whether you believe me or not."  Kenji insisted with a slight hiss, but then shrugged as if her belief in him was of little relevance.  "Though the opportunity has been present before, I chose other alternatives, for there is more purpose to my life than merely submitting to hormonal urges and acting upon them."

"Y-you sure weren't saying that a few minutes ago…" the shivering girl provoked intentionally, as she shifted her arms to hug herself, a weak but firm shield against the cold, silently hoping that he would distance himself from her as a result.

His retort was simple, but true: "Neither were you."

Uriko flushed at his blatant reply and barely managed to fire back, "W-well... you were attacking me with your lips…!"

The domineering assassin barked out a sharp laugh at her choice of words, further expressing his amusement by allowing a grin to crease his lips as he taunted, "I believe you are utterly ignorant of the meaning of that word, Uriko, for there was no such 'attack' involved…  I kissed you, and might I add that you responded quite fondly…"

She blinked in slight stupor, unsure of how to reply; after all, he was speaking the truth, which made it exceptionally hard to dodge his accusations and claim them to be nothing more than nonsense, so the girl finally just admitted, "I, um… darn it, I already told you I was confused… th-that's the only reason why…"

Though she trailed off, he understood what excuse she was trying to give; "Hah, I am certain that is the sole reason indeed…  You know you enjoyed yourself, my precious little kitten… there is no need to deny it."  To pour on a pinch of salt to the wound, he further instigated, "I am rather curious to know why you seemed so disappointed with my…lack of experience.  Were you hoping that I had been just as promiscuous as those typically foolish and mindless teenage males wandering around your home?"

"N-no!  I didn't say anything like that!  I-I don't care what you did with other people!"  She shook her head defiantly, refusing to look at him as she glanced away just then, hiding the earnest emotions in her eyes from being seen by the perceptive ninja, not wanting him to detect the desire still lingering in her dark pupils.

"......"  Somewhat to her surprise, Kenji offered no reply – backlash, really – to her claim, and when she slowly pivoted to peer at him out of curiosity, she saw him fiddle with his clothing a bit in the darkness, and after the movement ceased, he took a step toward her.  Knowing that she would very likely quickly retreat upon detecting his movement, the ninja swiftly closed the distance between them and tossed his trademark scarf over the nape of her neck, but made no further advance and simply gazed intently at the confused female.  The said girl had initially winced when the dark material came flying at her and immediately covered her face, fearing an attack of some sort, but when none came, she allowed her hands to slide down slowly, twin mahogany eyes widened and alert to lock onto the slightly older bystander.  Upon regaining sight, Uriko found herself in close proximity with him once again, mere inches separating their faces, and she squeaked slightly in response as her body instinctively tried to lurch back and get away from the dogged pursuer.

The cobalt-haired young man followed her step, but did not force her into any action once more… well, other than perhaps to deal with his continued close presence; the long crimson scarf billowed out as she reacted, moving in-sync with the night breeze.  She glanced at him uneasily, unsure of his intentions and hesitantly sent her arms around behind her neck to grasp a hold of his accessory and easily remove it from entrapping her to this forced partner, but the instant she initiated movement, Kenji spoke again, his words enticingly caressing as he toyed with her emotions.  "My body was unable to warm you… is that not correct?  You pushed me away, after all, so surely that must be why…" - he paused briefly, allowing the impact of what he was saying to seep into her mind as his hand gestured to the scarf that now hung loosely around her neck – "Yet… perhaps you will find warmth in that which is mine.  …Or will you reject that generosity as well, and be left alone… bare… defenseless… utterly susceptive to being overwhelmed and conquered by the bitter cold?"

His captive elicited a small noise of confusion, proving that she was indeed indecisive, and even startled herself when she raised the dark material, warm from his body, and rubbed it against her cheek, her lower lip trembling a bit in uncertainty.  The girl slowly glanced up and met his eyes hesitantly, shivering when she spied the obvious hunger in his light-shaded pupils that possibly mirrored the emotions in her own orbs, overwhelming of their accord from the intensity.  She allowed the twin lids to slip down to a close as she carefully considered his words, wanting to believe him because she indeed felt lonely, what with her freedom controlled and dictated by a ninja who was just months older than herself, but strung along by a madman.  Her silence and passiveness allowed the ninja to take control of the situation and he did so immediately, moving in to close the distance between the two once more before raising a hand to place over hers, which presently was gripping the scarf for all her worth.

As his other arm rose to cup her cheek, and his eyes focused intently upon the younger youth, allowing the deep pools to tell the story for him, Uriko gulped rather noticeably, a small lump temporarily appeared in her throat that clearly expressed her current intimidated state.  She glanced down at his hand covering hers so securely and inwardly marveled in the strange feel of safety and comfort that he gave her just then, wondering how it was possible that he could ever bring her anything other than fear, instability, and bewildering mind games…  How astonishing that he was capable of passion, a strong humane emotion she thought he could not possibly attain with his dark and sadistic desires, but he proved her wrong, and the girl had to admit that this came as a rather pleasant surprise.  Large innocent eyes danced around for a bit before they finally settled on Kenji, and she met his gaze courageously, matching his strength merely by answering his challenge; in response, he grinned slightly, though it did not appear smug for once, but almost proud instead.

"Very good, Uriko…" his warm breath tickled her lips when he spoke, and visibly startled by the strange compliment, his captive blinked in bewilderment as she edged back uncertainly, but he pressed onward with, "You truly never cease to amaze me…"

Confused by the enigmatic admission, Uriko quirked a brow and tilted her head to the side a little, inwardly wondering about the provocative implication underlying his statement; "Huh?  What… what do you mean by that…?"

The dark-haired ninja hid a silent chuckle while his expression appeared as if he had found her response very amusing, and held her gaze captive, his eyes intense as the next words spilled forth without the hint of mockery or insincerity, "There is strength in your eyes, Uriko… I can see it…  You doubt my word, and fear the shadows of the unknown, rightfully preemptively assuming its harmful intent, but in spite of that, you still stand to face what comes… I must admit I find that trait of yours to be quite admirable."

This new confession stunned her into silence; the amateur Kenpo student seemed truly confused as she searched his endless amber pools, trying to identify the truth in them, inwardly hoping that the usually-weary assassin truly meant those words.  After detecting utmost sincerity in his otherwise cloudy aura, she was startled to realize that she had even a sliver of faith in him, actually trusted Kenji to keep his promise even with the immoral actions that he displayed to her over the period they shared together.  But that would explain why she gave into his desires without resisting so adamantly – aside from the fact that he did bring her pleasure, as she had to confess that she allowed her natural curiosity to take control and guide her down the seductive path.  Discovering his real identity had indeed dropped her guard down a bit, but his recent show of emotions convinced Uriko that over time, and if he was willing to, she could help him return to his former self, thus keeping the family surname alive in honor of his deceased older brother.

On the other hand, Kenji felt completely comfortable with what he had just admitted to the younger zoanthrope; after all, it was the truth, and if he chose to, the reserved assassin could be quite blatant with his thoughts and opinions on particular subjects.  He pondered intently over the girl… she greatly fascinated him, almost to a point where he was starting to become concerned, and yet because of his stubbornness, he refused to admit such a small weakness, for that would mean he had submitted to her beguiling ways.  So even though he admitted aloud that she had a strong spirit, it really just made the ninja all the more determined to shatter her mental barrage and bend Uriko to his will, but he was not even considering what his master would think of such an action.  Overpowering all of those tentative aspects came the pleasuring possibility of having the privilege to control such a fiery entity of passionate emotions to his every whim and desire, for the mere thought of his intriguing captive's independent spirit under his hand was just far too tempting…


	23. Return To Reality

_Of course as usual, special dedication to Andrew Glasco for his generous ideas on this chapter.  _

**Chapter 23**

**Return To Reality**

Surprised that he would actually associate her with strength when the two had done nothing but constantly bicker about whom was stronger and could beat the other person for the past week, Uriko pursed her lips in a bit of contemplation and stammered slightly, "And I… I thought you just saw me as weak…"

He shook his head and sought to explain; "Strength takes many forms, my dear kitten…  While your feeble muscles undoubtedly make you physically weak, there is steel in your eyes.  Not many people in this world can truly stand up for what they claim to believe in… but your resolve is solid.  Such a display is… almost impressive."

She was unable to prevent herself from flinching at his baffling words; his strange way of speaking and usage of enigmatic statements twisted her around in circles as usual, and she felt increasingly annoyed by such a power play.  While the compliment sounded sincere, and so far he had not yet lied to her, the girl was still unsure about placing full trust in him, as he did remain her enemy after all, and it could be fatally foolish to believe anyone from the ZLF.  Unbidden came the possibility that he was trying to gain a slight edge in their situation by taking advantage of her compassionate side, so bearing that in mind, Uriko became more determined to keep showing him her firmness in wanting to be free.  Deciding to try and end the issue right then and there with a decisive display, she declared boldly, "I-I'm definitely a lot stronger than you think, so just remember that n-no matter what happens… I'll n-never bend to your will… Kenji."

When a feral grin creased his lips and a rather malicious glint inhabited his light amber eyes, the younger youth eased a small step away cautiously, instantly afraid that he would try to ensue an effective action to prove her claim incorrect.  The hand upon her cheek suddenly moved and began to nonchalantly wrap the scarf around her neck with the same tenderness she had been so surprised with earlier, suggesting that her declaration did not seem to bother the mysterious-minded assassin in the least bit.  Reacting immediately to his movement, Uriko grasped the scarf tightly with both hands in apprehension that he was going to strangle her, but it proved to be just a figment of her paranoia when the ninja merely meet her eyes, utter calmness in his orbs.  He appeared to feel mildly amused at her abrupt grab for the crimson length but startlingly calm and undisturbed; perhaps he even knew just exactly why she had done so if his strange quirk of one brow was any indication as he inquired casually, "What a peculiar response…  Am I not permitted to wrap the scarf, my defensive feline?"

She found it rather embarrassing to admit that she thought he was going to kill her and quickly released his scarf, raising both hands to cover her face before the weary girl managed to stammer weakly in reply, "W-wrap?  B-but I'm not a present to be given away…"

"Did I say that?  I believe not.  You are putting words into my mouth, dear cat…"  The words almost came out in a hiss, and stubbornly, Kenji tried to wind his accessory around her once again, pleased that this time she offered no resistance, so he was able to finish the task in a moment and lowered his hands afterwards.

Although Uriko had allowed him to wrap the scarf about her neck in his strange way of bringing her warmth, she still cried out with desperation very evident in her voice, "Wh-what the heck am I supposed to think then?  I-I don't know wh-what goes on in your head!  Y-you never tell me an-anything about yourself!"  Beginning to feel numb from the cold, she closed her eyes just as her lips started trembling; the younger youth desperately needed warmth to ignite in her body, and feared that she would pass out from the low temperature with just a flimsy shirt and shorts to protect her tender body.

          Sensing her discomfort and surprisingly heeding to it, the ninja stepped back and folded his arms over his chest, placid voice its usual emotionless tone as he complied, "Well… perhaps you deserve to understand.  Tonight has been a bit…trying on you…has it not?  Go on and ask, then… what is it that you wish to know about me?"

Initially a bit taken back, she silently pondered over what to inquire of him for a moment, and then after willingly regaining vision, she verbalized her thoughts aloud albeit cautiously, "Why… why don't you wanna change, especially after what you just found out about yourself, Kenji…?  I mean, I don't get how… how you can live with yourself knowing that you've done such horrible things to people…?  Do you… can you even admit that you're Kenji, or… do you still go by Bakuryu?"  While bombarding him with a slew of questions, she also simultaneously wondered inside her head, _And… and what do you think of me now?  Has anything changed between us?  …Geez, why the heck do I even care?  It's not like he's gonna just let me go like that because he found out he's someone else…_

Kenji met her gaze without hesitation after the words were said, seeming completely confident in his current position, and rightfully so, for very few instances had his captive taken hold of the situation, but this was one case that he absolutely refused to relinquish control over.  Through the veil of darkness she detected an unholy gleam briefly flickering in his light irises, and bit her lip nervously in response, yet somehow grasped enough courage to remain in the same spot and await his reply, whenever he chose to release it to her.  She expected the long silence, but it still made her uncomfortable; Uriko allowed her eyes to wander after a while, darting about the place freely, wanting to focus on a sight that would not bring her the slightest feeling of squeamish, that most likely having to be an inanimate one.  When she realized that he would not answer unless he had her full attention, the girl reluctantly turned back to glance at her male companion with a hint of timidity in her character while inwardly praying for strength to help her through whatever he was about to reveal.

Finally, he spoke with eerie calmness, "…I am still the same person that you see before your eyes, Uriko; nothing more or less.  Why you presume that new information regarding my past should affect me in a dire manner is beyond my comprehension, for I see that a name is merely call sake, so whether or not you wish to identify me as Bakuryu or Kenji is your choice…" He paused momentarily upon reaching a quick revelation; "But then again… I am both; would you not admit the truth in that?  Yes, I was known as Kenji before… but now, I am different… I have changed and adopted the alias and lifestyle of Bakuryu, the highest-ranked ninja assassin of the Zoanthrope Liberation Front.  Now knowing that I used to be called this…Kenji Ohgami person…am I really one more than the other?  I fail to grasp the validity of that assumption, my dear kitten.  To change who I am… why?  What purpose do I have in ensuing a complete turnaround?  My present services are for the good of my master, the man that made me who I am today and not to mention they also benefit our fellow zoanthrope kind…  I honestly cannot understand what you find wrong with my current occupation, for I see only positive outcomes, and yet you somehow manage to obscure the entire situation with your limited and naïvely filtered perception…"

The listener patiently waited until he was done speaking, but her eyes had already narrowed to slits by the end; she simply could not believe that he just tried to pin the blame on her instead of realizing what should have been, in her opinion, an obvious truth.  She retorted a little shrilly, annoyance clearly evident in her usually melodic voice; "You don't know what's wrong with your…'service'?  Geez, you say that like it… like it's a normal hobby or something…  Oh come on, Kenji, you k-kill people; how can you _not_ see that it's a horrible thing to do…?  If… if you wanna say th-that you really don't give a care about other p-people's lives, then… then you might as well just get rid of me too…"

The sixteen-year-old flinched slightly after she was finished presenting her side of the argument, and he found it a bit amusing that her actions constantly betrayed what came out of her mouth, and in fact almost wanted to poke fun at her for that.  But after recalling her usual antic of speaking so passionately because of her beliefs, the reserved killer merely gave a shrug and informed her almost reassuringly, "Before you preemptively decide to disregard what I am about to say, do realize this, Uriko… I can identify your morality, and truth be told, I even understand it.  I end the lives of other bystanders that we share this world with… and I also bring suffering to all those who knew them…  As a matter of fact, I am confident that the influence of my actions span across this great country, and perhaps one day will influence the other side of this globe.  True, some may find it an atrocious tragedy that my victims must die… but I must admit that I earnestly feel their lives – actually, think of it as more of a sacrifice - is a worthy one.  If you find it unfair that unlucky pawns in this game of reality are the only entities that have to suffer in order for justice to be attained, then allow me to inform you that the orders my master bestow upon my person completely surpass any one life, even including my own."

Instead of showing surprise at that startling bit of information, Uriko crinkled her nose in disgust at his blind guidance and true to her blatant nature, fired rather sassily, "Y-your master… is nothing more than a smelly old pervert…!  Everyone who follows him is stupid to throw away their heart so easily and just kill people because one psycho decided that terrorizing others is the only way of solving a big problem!  If… if there's a hell somewhere, your master would definitely be the first one sent to live in that place…"

His eyes narrowed dangerously and the next words came out in a low hiss; "My master is a visionary, you foolish little girl…  Hrmp, I am honestly not surprised the least bit to bear witness to your pitiful naïveté.  After all, a mind so simple such as your own could never hope to handle even merely glimpsing at a portion of the overall larger image…"

The younger youth challenged the domineering captor with her eyes as she insisted heatedly, "If you keep listening to his garbage, then you'll just end up with a hopeless, dark, and terrible future that nobody can live in…"

"No."  He shook his head slowly, almost appearing to pity her for being unable to see his viewpoint, and sought to explain thoroughly, "We are adamantly striving for a zoanthrope utopia, Uriko.  You and all other zoanthropes outside of our ZLF are the actual blind ones, traitors to your own kind by living in a human world and protecting those pathetic weaklings that create our boundaries and persecute us if we are discovered…  Our very genes alone demonstrate our superiority, and yet we are caged like dirt-leveled pets…!  The Liberation Front offers a chance for us to be free!  Humans are disgusting, vile filth, denying anyone not like them with their preemptive prejudice, and zoanthropes who mingle with those low creatures are traitors, so in my eyes, all who die at my hand deserve the burden of eternal darkness."

The person he was trying to convince just stared at him blankly, admittedly stunned by his fierce passion, but still refused to give into his mindset; the cold thankfully distracted her a bit as well, making her teeth chatter slightly, and she rubbed her sides frantically in an attempt to create warmth.  "Who… who gave you the r-right to decide that humans are th-the awful ones in this world, and… and who sh-should live and d-die…?  Y-you just stand there and say such horrible things about humans, but I b-bet you've never even m-made friends with one before!  How the heck can you mutter all that without first getting to know a human?  I-I have human friends, and they're not bad people…"

"Hah!"  The dark-haired ninja scoffed at her words before eliciting rather heatedly, "I know without a doubt in my mind that humans are inferior, and I certainly care not for a personal experience with one!  That species is filled with nothing but selfish fools.  Remember, Uriko, it was they who began this war, even you should be aware of that little factor… but rest assured, it shall be we zoanthropes who will finish it and emerge victorious in the end.  We would have been closer to that goal had it not been for that annoying little resistance group and their constant interference in a countless number of our more important tasks…"

          Faint light shone in Uriko's eyes at the mention; so her sister and her other friends _had_ been making a significant difference in the fight against the Zoanthrope Liberation Front… but if only she were back at home and could tell Alice of the progress everyone was making…

Kenji was silent for a few moments, simply watching his captive to catch sight of her reaction, and when he noticed determination hardening her expression, he scowled lowly under his breath, a tad confused by her sudden change, and also irritated at the resistance shown by this girl.  _Perhaps I underestimated the strength of her will… hrmp, no matter; I shall still have her broken in the end._  "…Get out.  We are returning to the cabin now."

Shaken out of her brief trance, she glanced at him briefly, and then looked away, muttering softly, "Y-you go ahead… I-I wanna stay here and be alone…"  The brunette was trying to deny the truth to her own body that she could survive in the lake much longer, although truthfully, after hearing what he just said, she would rather freeze than be with such a repulsive creature, and shuddered at the memory of their passionate embrace, vowing to never let him touch her again…

The young assassin narrowed his eyes.  "I suppose I should myself more clear… we are **both** going back.  You will freeze out here if you stay much longer… and aside from that, you obviously need your rest, little girl…"

Sending him a furious glare, Uriko straightened her position to full height and retorted directly at his face, making sure her speech would not falter, "You're not my mother, so keep your advice to yourself!  I'll go back when I'm ready!"

"How unfortunate that you seem to have forgotten your position so soon already, Uriko Nonomura…" he smirked coldly in reply.

          "Is that… a threat?" came the still-steady hiss.

Kenji eyed her evenly, and for a second, contemplated instilling fear into her for bringing him so much trouble on this night, but recalled that he had given his word earlier with the intent of keeping it, and instead answered in a milder tone, "No… that was merely a reminder to you.  How many times must I assure you that I truly have no desire to raise my hand against you this night?"

"You can say it a million times, but I'll still think you're lying, so… so just put all that stupid possessiveness of yours aside and go back to your favorite cottage already… sheesh, you're disturbing the beautiful scenery…"  The disbelieving girl grabbed a hold of the scarf and hastily took it off her neck, growling quietly despite his somewhat reassuring words at the latter part of his statement, as she flung the crimson article right into his face, to which he nonchalantly tossed over his shoulder.

"No."  He answered flatly as he folded his arms, his steady tone leaving naught a sliver of room for argument; "I cannot allow you to stay here by yourself without trustworthy assurance that you would not simply flee as soon as I turn my back."

She sighed in exasperation, indicating she was surprised that he would be so asinine in even voicing such a crazy suggestion, "Geez, what's the point of wasting my time and energy that way?  I know you'd just bring me back if I did…"

"Hrmp… you are absolutely correct in that statement; it is rather assuring to discover that you have finally allowed that possibility to leave you… training is your only hope now, but even with my helping you grow stronger, you still have no hope, for my skill is derived from years of practice and exercise, not mere days or weeks…  Speaking of which," a wicked grin betrayed his lips just then, "Your master must be very poor indeed if with all that he has taught you, your level of fighting is presently this low and almost utterly pathetic…"

Annoyed that he would speak so disrespectfully of her esteemed Kenpo teacher, the female student fired in fierce defense, "Grrr… you leave Master Long outta this!!  He's a great fighter and you don't even know him, so quit saying stuff when you don't know if it's true or not!"

Appearing unfazed by her passion, Kenji just shrugged casually and responded with, "I only speak from what information I have gathered, and along with what I know of you.  I must deem him an inadequate teacher simply because of _your_ poor performance, my young feline.  After all… if you insist that your master is so diligent in his training of you, then why has he not come in search of his most prized and esteemed student?"

She glanced away at the sharp accusation, not wanting to mention that her sister and friends thought the auburn-haired youth was away at camp, but did manage to give him a truthful, curt answer, although of course the lack of a search party aroused the suspicions of her captor anyway; "Master Long is working on beating up your lousy ZLF people with my other friends…"

The ninja chuckled and inquired rather cruelly, "Your 'friends', you say…  Such fragile bonds you share with these individuals… I find it interesting that not a soul has neared these woods in search of you these past few days."  When Uriko snorted slightly and turned her back to him, obviously conveying that she was withholding knowledge from her curious companion, he provoked further with a dark smile, "Hmm… I detect a bit of tension in your unwillingness to answer my question relating to that topic…  Well then, in that case, I suppose an assumption can be safely made that there is no rush for time on my part."

She whirled around to face him at this bold declaration, and he spied a sliver of hurt in her eyes that almost made him hesitate, but then the girl raised her arm up and sliced it down swiftly, splashing water directly at her captor, inwardly pleased to see him falter just slightly at the action.  After a silent moment passed with her merely watching him wipe the wet liquid off with the back of his hand, Uriko managed a convincing laugh; "You're really funny sometimes, Kenji… you think you're so great, but you're seriously the only one that doesn't see the light…  Maybe you just don't want to admit it, but everyone knows that you have so many flaws, a bunch of serious attitude problems to work out, and you're definitely not perfect.  Actually, you know what…" – a sudden sly glint shimmered in her dark orbs – "those are errors that I hear a lot of people at school talk about, so that means you're more human than you think…"

Fire flared up in his amber irises at the stinging partial truth of that statement, but Kenji quickly recomposed himself and spat in reply, "Human, hah…!  I truly have no illusions of being perfect, but I am definitely not one of those filthy creatures that you blindly collaborate with.  How unfortunate that you have misconstrued my rightful confidence in merely feeling secure of our zoanthrope superiority over _their_ kind…"

The brunette elicited a low growl deep in her throat; "I sure wish that a human would beat you up someday just so you can eat those words…  Heck, who knows, maybe a human will be an even better assassin than you and take your place in the ZLF one day…"

Albeit bitterly, the calm ninja still grinned at the thought, withholding a chuckle as he elicited provocatively, "Little girl, your absurd sense of justice is one for a fairy tale… and unfortunately for you, this is reality, a cold and brutal world where only the strongest survive, which rules out the minority consisting of all you fools that are pathetically blind and foolishly soft-hearted."

Uriko was a bit stung by the blatant label, but only expressed distaste by shaking her head slightly, her next words spoken so quietly that she seemed almost submissive in that moment; "You… you're such a horrible person…  I seriously can't believe that you're this way today…  Argh, I'd rather have the old Kenji back, even if we did hate each other…!"

"You sound so sure, and yet you had only met me once before in the earlier years of our teenage life, is that not correct?  That single first encounter must have left quite an impacting impression if you are still sputtering with rage at this present time…"

"Like you really care…"  She muttered under her breath while absentmindedly waving a hand into the air toward his direction, a silent implication that she had either dismissed or completely disregarded what he just said, which admittedly made him a little annoyed.  Truth be told, the memory still plagued her conscience and the girl surprisingly felt guilty for treating him badly in the past, just another burden of a typical person regretting a wrongdoing with no means of attaining redemption, but she would never admit any of that to Kenji.  His constant arrogance and condescending tone truly infuriated her at times when he pushed her to the limit, which sometimes caused the feline zoanthrope to act upon passionate instincts rather than listen to reason, and thus earn her an unpleasant reprisal.  It was hard to recall any of this while the ninja and his captive had been in their heated embrace, but now that sense cleared her mind, she could think straight and vowed to never be beguiled enough that she would ever give into him again.

He nodded slowly in confirmation to her unintended conjecture.  "You are right in this instance in assuming that I indeed care naught a bit about your answer.  In actuality, I merely inquired that of you to pass the time… and speaking of which, when do you intend to return to the cabin?  You seem to enjoy wasting away the hours until exhaustion eventually overcomes your body and you are forced to submission by extreme fatigue…"

 "Oh, yeah?  So what if I stay out here all night, huh?"  She sassed provokingly, then tempted fate as she raised her hands to feign rubbing her eyes free of tears as Uriko continued taunting the steadily-rising aggravated assassin, "Are you gonna kill me or something for not listening to you?  Boohoo then."

Although Kenji truly did not harbor the desire to kill her by any stretch of the imagination, her coy remarks were slowly but effectively sliding underneath his skin, so in an effort to maintain control over his emotions, he made sure that his tone was maliciously dark with his next threat.  "If the circumstances called for it, I will gladly take your life without hesitation, Uriko Nonomura.  You may be protected by the wishes of my master, but you still know far too little about how this world runs.  Accidents, as unfortunate as they might be, do happen, and my master is fully aware of that factor… I believe it would be beneficial to your good health to remember that the next time you contemplate giving in so easily to disillusion."

"Grrr…"  A barely audible hiss escaped from her lips as the girl felt her body tremble from dual irritation and the chill of the weather and assured both parties with fierce insistence, "Go ahead and think whatever you want!  But trust me, just 'cause I don't yak on and on like you doesn't mean that I'm dumb, you wannabe know-it-all creep…"

The cobalt-haired teenager gazed at her for a good, long moment before he reared his head back and released laughter, full of mockery and amusement regarding her passionate words, which of course, just annoyed his younger companion even more.  Shooting him a fierce glare through narrowed eyes, she furiously hit the surface with the knife edge of her hand, causing a wave of the lake's wet liquid to fly up into the air heading right for Kenji, and because he was unprepared for the 'assault', it directly splashed over him.  He ducked to the side from pure instinct, though it was too late by then, and after he recovered back to his former proud stance, graciously granted Uriko a dangerous, withering look before lashing down at the surface with his own fist, which sent a sizable amount of water toward her in return.  She squeaked slightly in surprise at the somewhat mild reprisal and paused at that moment to shield herself with her arms when he continued his onslaught after the initial counterattack, all the while shivering from the new invasion of ice seeping into her skin.

The auburn-haired youth realized after some time that he would not relent until she gave in, so she decided not to falter in her firmness and started splashing at Kenji once again, though inwardly surprised that he would partake in an act considered playful had it been under different circumstances.  This exchange between the two parties ensured for a short period before Uriko became fully aware that her nerves were gradually, but surely growing numb from being soaked in the water for so longest, and suddenly ceased her action to take a more drastic measure.  The limber girl waited until Kenji looked away to prevent water from splashing on his face, and when that occurred, she pushed off from the muddy bottom of the lake and flew through the air, her arms outstretched as she tackled the ninja and sent both of them underneath the surface.  Thoroughly surrounded by the dark wetness, the horrible lightning made it direly difficult for the feline to see anything, so as soon as she had him down, she released her hold on the unsuspecting victim and swam away as quickly as she could, and quickly rose to the oxygen-filled atmosphere.

Unfortunately for Kenji, he suffered a considerable punishment in comparison; in fact, it took him several moments before he was able to finally emerge at the surface, coughing rather badly in the wake, as he had swallowed a lot of icy liquid on the exchange.  Looking a bit pale, the young man began to emit some water while at the same time, elicited a few rather distasteful gagging noises, but succumbing to his stubborn nature, he breathed deeply, trying to recompose himself, though he obviously felt sick.  Hearing the ragged noises coming from him, Uriko instantly felt worried for his condition and discarded their differences as she immediately swam over to his side, grabbing his shoulder while her other hand hastily slipped behind him to slap his back, her apprehension growing when he did not reply even after a while had passed.  Feeling utterly ridiculous for choking in such a pathetic display before the girl he had claimed such superiority over only minutes before, the ninja turned away from her shakily as his breathing slowly began to grow more even, but still was rather strained at the moment.

She quickly followed his motion around to his front side, and the palm that she had slapping his back moved over to hang the corresponding arm across his shoulder while her other hand gently clutched his face as she leaned in and peered at him closely to make sure that oxygen still made his chest rise and fall.  "Kenji?  Kenji!  Are you okay?  Can you breathe?  Do you need help?  Oh, please say something…!"


	24. Aiding The Wounded

_Major kudos to Andrew Glasco; he is the genius that came with the idea of Kenji getting weakened by Uriko's clever little antic.  And by the way, AKS will be rated R starting next chapter, and speaking of which, might be a little longer than my usual previous installments._

**Chapter 24**

**Aiding The Wounded**

Having fallen right into the lake and drinking so much water without his will, the ninja was not feeling up to his best, needless to say, but with the great assistance of precious air filling his lungs again between coughs, it could be assumed that he would live.  A groan of annoyance and dread was the answer to her worried questions, followed by another short fit of rather violent retching noises; compared to his usual stature, Kenji presently looked quite pitiful with his shaky posture and clearly evident physical instability.  Growing anxious that he had not yet answered her, Uriko squeezed his shoulder with the hand she laid atop him in an effort to ease his tensed muscles, while concern was very vivid on her face as she stammered an apology, hoping that would get him to finally talk.  "I…I'm sorry about that, Kenji-!  I-I didn't know you'd actually fall in…  Are you okay?  You're not gonna die on me or something, are ya…?  Oh… oh…  I swear, I didn't do that on purpose!  Hey, are your pupils dilating?  Heck, I don't even know what good that info's for…"

Unknown to her, the unexpected victim was effectively growing irritated with her barrage of questions and panicked babble; when he still did not answer, the girl forced herself to calm down and instead focused on detecting his well being.  She moved her hand to his eyes and tried to pry the twin lids up, to which he responded by irritably slapping her fingers away, turning aside once more, as the mere concept of his captive fawning over his ill state was far too embarrassing.  Despite his rejection of her help, Uriko still persisted, feeling she should live up to her responsibilities, so temporarily discarding her own chilly discomforts, she drifted over to Kenji until she faced him once again and reached out to grab his forearms, forcing him to look up at her.  His initial reaction came in the form of a rather harsh snarl, and he remained scornful even when she cried out partially in concern, albeit her voice was tainted with evident impatience, "Kenji!  Would you answer already, darn it!  Are you gonna be okay or not?!  You're worrying the heck outta me!"

His slightly-darkened pupils were filled with great aggravation, being so annoyed at the feline zoanthrope, but he sounded remarkably calm when he finally answered, still coughing occasionally, "I… I will be fine…  My response… was just a bit delayed due to… my swallowing a few… gallons of water…"

Uriko quirked an eyebrow at his statement, but just patted her companion on the head and ruffled his hair a bit, and although this was a casual, normal way for her to show mild fondness, the unfamiliarity felt rather condescending to the inexperienced male teenager.  "A-A few gallons…?  Oh, don't be silly, you weren't under there that long… …right?"  A frown marred her expression as she leaned in closely to peer carefully at him, breathing lightly on his skin when she spoke forlornly, "Ugh, I wish I knew CPR…  You don't look so good…"

Being somewhat disheveled, the seventeen-year-old only vaguely noticed her presence upon his shivering skin, and this hardly eliciting any reaction from him at all, since the current incapacitation was just a tad more alarming and had a bit of higher priority.  He did his best to growl out a response at her slightly insulting remark, but it came out as a mere pathetic groan and a moment later, a wave of dizziness gripped him, making his nausea worsen as Kenji swayed a little and brought a hand to his mouth, somehow managing to assure her stubbornly, "There is… no need for that… type of service…  I will… recover with time…"

Startled by the sudden reaction of his posture wavering, the compassionate girl immediately jumped to his side, wanting to stay close to the ninja in case he had a violent ail that would surface in spite of his refusal to voice any weakness.  _Oh, Kenji… are you really sure that you feel 'fine', or is this some kinda macho guy pride thing?_

When his guilt-ridden captive reached her hand over to the back of his neck just then and began to gently massage him, he was admittedly soothed by it and could concentrate on breathing better, though the incredible chill of his body hampered his efforts, so he angrily mused once the queasiness subsided a bit once more, "What the hell is wrong with this lake…?  Water is not… supposed to be so vile…"

The younger youth giggled quite nervously and changed her tactics to rubbing his arm comfortingly, though she backed away a little while agreeing softly, "Umm… yeah, I guess I'd say something like that too if it happened to me…  Hey, is… is your breathing back to normal yet?"

The cobalt-haired teenager coughed again and started to nod in conformation, but just then a dizzy spell slammed fully into him and his body started to sway; unlike before, the motion carried him too far and he started falling back toward the lake, a faraway look in his eyes.  Gasping in horror at what had suddenly transpired, Uriko reacted quickly and grabbed onto both of his forearms tightly, tugging the dazed ninja hard enough so that he would remain standing, albeit shakily, the girl groaning her effort as she took a hold of Kenji by his sides before slinging his arm across her shoulders.  Though obviously not as strong as the skilled assassin, she thankfully had raw determination and periodic jolts of fierce adrenaline on her side to keep him upright and she began to slowly drag her weary companion to dry land, gritting her teeth in effort the entire way.  His head limply tilted at an angle as he found himself unable to assist the brunette in any other way than to try remaining upright as much as possible while she continued the leisure pace until finally, both soaked parties were upon the dusty earth.

The drained girl proceeded over to an area with grass before she bent down as slowly as possible, and laid the ninja's body out flat, making sure to carefully cup the back of his head in both of her hands when she rested him upon her lap.  In a rare show of patience on her part, Uriko quietly waited for him to recover well enough to sit up or even talk, and passed the time by candidly stroking a few strands of his midnight blue hair with timid fingers, genuinely concerned about his condition.  She winced periodically as response when the unfortunate victim coughed every few moments while his deep amber eyes appeared uncharacteristically dulled and unfocused; Kenji seemed to be awake, but not completely aware at the moment.  His caretaker had to consciously fight back panic that threatened to surface from within her body and tried to distract herself by smoothing out his wet dark bangs over his forehead, gently stroking his cheek with her other hand as she gazed down at him intently all the while, suddenly murmuring, "Tell me whenever you're ready to sit up, Kenji…  I don't know how to do mouth-to-mouth or anything, but I can pound on your chest if there's still any water inside of ya…"

A few minutes passed before he finally emitted a pained groan… the first sound other than coughs that had noised from him in quite some time; his head listlessly lulled to one side and his eyes focused on her when the slightly confused whisper came, "Hm…?  N-no, rest assured, that is… not necessary…  I am fine, just… just a little cold now…"

As he slowly sat up and brought a hand to clutch his head, Uriko clasped her hands to her chest and threw him a worried look, wondering if he was telling the truth or just trying to conceal his obvious discomfort, but regardless, her large brown eyes still shone with sorrow and compassion as she glanced down guiltily.  "Whoever knew that you… that you'd almost drown… from what I did…  I-I'm sorry, really…!"

The dark-haired ninja waved away her apology and grumbled a bit in irritation, "I am more affected by… the frigid weather and fatigue than this… current predicament of mine…  I should like to… return to the cabin now, Uriko… unless you truly insist on staying out here still…"

She nodded enthusiastically, easily deciding to give into his request since it was only fair, considering she had put him through quite a hellish situation and all; "N-no, I'm okay with going back… but um, can you make it there all by yourself or… do you need help?"

"I will be fine…"  He hissed stubbornly upon rising to a sitting position, and continued to ascend slowly until he stood back on his feet, fully away of the girl's watchful dark eyes on his form before she shrugged aimlessly and jumped to her feet, taking off into the forest.  She was undoubtedly sympathetic toward his condition, but still wanted an unannounced test to see if Kenji meant what he said, that he would recover soon, although he simply began walking after her trail, obviously not up to giving chase at the moment.  He felt a bit nauseous from all the unwanted liquid that had downed not long ago, but the leisure stroll helped his body retain balance a bit, especially when he stopped at one point to vomit, and when he finally emerged from the woods after some time, the ninja instantly noticed that the cottage door was left open for him.  Shaking his head slightly from dual sensations of surprise at her action and disgust with his own fragility, the presently-weakened fighter made his way inside and received quite a warm welcome; he supposed that Uriko apparently thought his trek took too long.

 "Kenji!"  She ran up to the said figure upon his arrival, bouncing a bit on the short journey and immediately grabbed his arm, strangely hyperactive considering her current state, and confirmed his conjecture with her heated insistence, "Geez, you took so long that I got worried!  I thought I'd have to go back in there and drag you out!"

His pride vividly damaged by her evident power over him at that moment, the disempowered killer thought little of the overly excited demeanor being displayed and just glanced away uncomfortably as he mumbled somberly in reply, "I told you there is nothing wrong with me…  You can cease your worrying…"

Uriko scoffed a little at the hesitant fib and shut the door securely behind them before she assisted Kenji over to the cot and urged him to sit down, then bounded over to the table and picked up a bowl filled with warm red liquid, bringing that and a spoon over to the weary individual.  "O-kay… you should go to sleep pretty soon, but before that, you have to get warmed up, so, um… I made this for you 'cause Sister says tomato soup is good for colds…"

Well, he was certainly unaware that his journey back to the cottage took so long that she actually had the time to make soup for him during the process; the disgruntled ninja snorted in annoyance at being treated like a pathetically injured patient and retorted a bit scornfully, "An effort wasted in vain.  Hunger is not present within my body at the moment."

"But… but you're cold and wet, right?  Unless you wanna get really sick, you'll drink this…" she doggedly presented the act of kindness to him, practically shoving the soup into his hands in spite of the laborious sigh that he emitted just then in cohorts with his previous protest.

"…Fine then."  His pride was being dealt a horrible blow, but he did feel terrible, and the chills in his body, along with the nausea that just left him not long ago, overrode his will to attain his usual firmness of expressing unyielding strength, so Kenji at last accepted the bowl, though he did inquire all of a suddenly, "…Uriko.  Why are you bothering to do all this?"

The sixteen-year-old tilted her head to the side a bit, carefully considering her answer before replying with her own question of confirmation, "You wanna know why I'm helping you?"  He nodded slightly but did not eat just yet, opting to listen to her speak first; "Well… I feel bad for being the one that got you in this state in the first place…  Heck, you might not have a heart, but I do, and I definitely wouldn't feel good about myself if I just left you alone there, all sick and weak…"

His eyes narrowed to thin slits in expression of his silent resentment toward her choice of words, and Kenji scowled to convey his discontentment aloud as he insisted stubbornly, "I may be ill at the moment… but do _not_ mistaken that as my person being **fragile** or feeble, little girl…"

She rolled her eyes at his biting verbal reprisal, but inwardly reminded herself to be patient with her companion, and although she honestly felt like smacking him for caring about something so minor and unimportant compared to a health risk, the girl still apologized nevertheless, "Right… sorry, just used the wrong word there…"

Suddenly feeling strangely ashamed in regards to his rash behavior toward her, the cobalt-haired ninja nodded in a rather stiff, silent form of thanks at his caretaker before dipping a spoon into the bowl and then retracted it, lifting the reddish orange liquid to his mouth.  He blew lightly upon the small airborne quantity and took a bite, his eyes comfortably drifting to a close when warmth instantly flooded him, and pleased with the progress; he quickly repeated the action, as the soup was quite therapeutic to his chilly and presently ill body.  Uriko stood back quietly and just watched her 'patient', feeling satisfied when she saw color returning to his cheeks, the former pale shade plaguing his form now a mere memory, and noted with a bit of interest that a smile teased his lips as he ate.  The girl herself felt quite cold and desperately wanted to change out of her wet clothes, but she also had the compassion to make sure that Kenji was all right and would recover from his condition, so she patiently waited until he finished consuming the soup.

"S-so… you feel better now?  A-and, um… are you… are you mad at me…?"  The uncharacteristically shy female teenager inquired just then, inwardly hating the meekness of her voice that would undoubtedly express inner fear of her captive, but truthful with herself in admitting that asking him such a question made her quite nervous of his answer.

Kenji placed the bowl aside when he was finished and turned his eyes to the younger girl once the question had been presented to him; he fell silent for a moment, carefully considering what to say in his head, equally wary of his response.  Truth be told, he felt more ashamed at himself for falling victim to such a simple ploy rather than having the desire to focus his energy on being furious at her, although he certainly would not opt to explain that aloud, and finally just replied with, "Yes, I should be fine after a night's rest… thank you.  …And no, I am not angry with you, Uriko."

"…Whew, that's good…"  She looked visibly relieved and flashed her companion a weak smile as she strolled by him to take his bowl away, then walked over to put it in the sink to be bothered with later; the compassionate youth decisively called the night to a conclusion when she then asked, "Hey… do you wanna go to sleep, Kenji?"

"Definitely a commendable idea…" he breathed quietly, throwing in a curt nod to further express his agreement with her implied suggestion; the young man was, after all, physically exhausted after the taxing ordeal, but besides that, he simply wanted the embarrassing day to be over with – only tomorrow could he wake up with his pride intact.

Uriko gave him a small, sheepish grin at the underlying approval of his tone and urged enthusiastically, "Okay, go ahead and change!  But um, can you make it to the bathroom by yourself, or do you need my help?  I mean, you still look kinda weak and all…  Actually, I think I should go to the bathroom so you can change here by yourself and don't have to move around then…"

He shot her an annoyed glare at the pampering treatment; she honestly had some nerve to treat him like he was incompetent or an invalid, and laced his next words with acidic distaste, "I made it here from the lake back to the cottage on my own… I believe that such an excruciating journey over to the lavatory from my current position will be considerably effortless in comparison, my doubtful little kitten…"

She barely caught herself from rolling her eyes and instead waved her hand toward the bathroom, looking away uncomfortably as she did so, inwardly hoping to get changed herself very soon, as her body was clearly outlined by the water-made transparent material.  Not even noticing her unease, Kenji sat up after a moment, stubbornly ignoring the slight dizzy sensation swirling in his head, refusing to give into the darkness; he was the great assassin Bakuryu, so how dare she treat him like a simple boy who needed assistance on such measly tasks!   Persistently, he grasped the edge of the coarse mattress and slowly began to rise, almost grinning triumphantly when he managed to stand up without incident, but upon taking a single step forward, his balance immediately faltered and the unsuspecting teenager crumpled to the floor.  Uriko gasped in shock upon witnessing the pitiful sight and quickly rushed over to his downed position to help him get back on his feet, succeeding after a bit of a struggle, and then she patted him softly on the head, an unconsciously condescending action while murmuring softly, "Oh Kenji, poor you…"

The disadvantaged assassin growled weakly in reply but had to admit his body would fail to carry out his desires, so he allowed the young brunette to seat him down on the cot and watched her walk across the room to the dresser where he kept his clothes.  "You can change here and I'll go in the bathroom.  I'll get an outfit for you… what do you wanna wear?"

"Whatever lying on top in the first drawer is fine…" he grumbled quietly, feeling utterly angry with himself and his current, thoroughly resented weakness.

She briefly nodded in confirmation and pulled out a white muscle shirt and a pair of dark grey sweats from the top slot of the bureau, exclaiming with a bit of surprise in her tone soon afterwards, "Hey, you actually wear normal stuff?  I thought you only had those ninja outfits and nothing else…"

He draped an arm along his well-muscled abdomen and turned his eyes down to the floor before muttering uncomfortably, "That should not come as such a surprise to you…  And in regards to my ninja gi attire, it represents who I am and so I wear it with pride… I see nothing wrong with that…"

"Um… okay, I guess…  Well, I'm gonna go to the bathroom now so you can be alone here."  Unsure of what else to say, Uriko just shrugged a bit and walked over to the seventeen-year-old, delivering him the surprisingly casual attire that would serve as his nightwear before she strolled over to her own bag and retrieved new clothes for herself.  She shot a Kenji a brief look of pity on her way to the facilities, and being so distracted with plaguing thoughts of guilt, she forgot to lock the door; once inside, she stood idly and stared at her reflection in the mirror, feeling utterly ashamed with the person she was looking at.  Sighing disdainfully, the girl grasped her hair in both hands and proceeded to squeeze out the water into the sink, slowly drying off the long tresses while contemplating in her mind with a pained expression; _Sheesh, I can't believe that Kenji almost drowned because of me…  What a stupid thing I did…  Oh sis, you'd hate me if I took someone's life like that…  Well, thank goodness he's okay… but I wonder why he isn't angry at me.  Huh, Kenji sure looked surprised when I helped him though; I guess he isn't used to nice treatment._

Meanwhile, outside in the main room of the cottage, the ninja quietly growled after her retreating form in annoyance, despising such treatment that made him seem helpless, for although his body could not presently operate at its full capacity, he was not weak.  He never had been, nor ever would be: that was the truth and a certainty in his mind, so with these assuring thoughts running through his head, Kenji began to change into the dry clothes, silently willing himself to recovery as warmth and liquidity slowly returned to his muscles.  His mind recollected the unfortunate events that had transpired earlier at the lake all the while, and his eyes narrowed upon a sudden realization, that even though he admitted to falling into her trap, his captive was the one to trip him up, and without her interference, there would have been no issue such as this current one.  Perhaps he had been foolish to be injured in such a way, but the fact remained that his ailment was her fault, and as he slipped on the comfortable white shirt, having already replaced his pants, darkness inhabited his head; _That damn naïve little girl… she causes my ailment, and then taunts me by flaunting it in my face with so-called help…  Hah!  Such an offered service from her is doubtlessly unnecessary… for I need no one._

"This young amateur has quite a bit of nerve… too much for her own well-being, unfortunately on her part…" he muttered aloud as his eyes slowly trailed towards the bathroom door, feeding more to the fire at just how much he truly despised her treatment toward him earlier.  Despite the fact that it had been out of compassion, he felt that she was acting condescending to him and tried to undermine his power, which made the assassin just slightly livid at the thought, and he decided to regain control by turning the tables on her somehow.  His mind conjured up an image that he would not soon forget: the memory of her naked body glistening in the lake underneath the moonlight that night she was bathing and he had watched without her knowing… this presently stirred a strange feeling in him.  Kenji remembered her reaction when the two were embracing back at the serene location, how she had seemed to hate giving into his seductive ploy even though she did succumb willingly, and yet perhaps the girl felt so because it was a sure way for him to twiddle down her barrage…

"It is about time she learned that her body is no longer hers alone…" came the low hiss as the speaker slowly stood to his feet again and closed his eyes for a moment, breathing evenly to ensure that his balance was correct and would not fail him on this occasion.  Once satisfied that his footing seemed well enough, he started towards the lavatory, where the unsuspecting young female was currently changing herself, having placed her dry clothes next to the sink as she started removing her top, raising the long shirt up and over her head before slinging it over the counter.  Uriko peered at her bare skin and grimaced upon noticing the unhealthy paleness, thinking it was there because she admittedly still felt quite cold, but when remembering how heated she felt while she and Kenji had been embracing, her cheeks immediately blushed furiously.  She quickly discarded the thought and concentrated on stripping off her shorts, replacing that article of clothing with a dry pair, topless for the time being, and hopelessly oblivious to the fact that the reserved assassin was currently on the other side of the bathroom door.

When he reached his desired destination, the ninja allowed a rather creepy grin of anticipation to rise upon his lips as one hand firmly grabbed the knob, turned it, and swung the tall frame open unceremoniously, his eyes shamelessly finding the body of his desirable captive once the opportunity was granted.  _Mmm…__ I must admit that looking upon such an attractive form is certainly not a displeasing chore…_

The unsuspecting victim shivered at the feel of a sudden draft breezing by her half-naked form, and when she turned to confront the source, her eyes widened in shock while her arms immediately flew up to cover her bare chest as she squealed, "Kenji!  What in the world…?!"

"You sound so surprised, little girl… but why?  Certainly there is nothing for you to be ashamed of…" he murmured licentiously while his eyes glimmered in cohorts with his silky words, displaying clearly bemused delight at her reaction as the smile etched into his lips widened a bit.

"Y-y-you pervert!!  H-how d-dare you!!"  She sputtered as her crimson face expressed anxious disdain, and when Uriko removed one arm to try slamming the door shut in his face, the perceptive ninja reacted quickly and immediately pressed his foot in, successfully stopping the momentum.

"You seem to have unfortunately forgotten an important factor, little girl…"  Kenji whispered softly with that same cruel grin tainting his lips, silently mocking the feline zoanthrope as she used the weak strength of one arm to push the wooden barrier against him in spite of his obvious advantage over her in that moment, especially considering his adamant determination.  "You are half mine now, Uriko, and I feel no shame in looking upon my property…  And remember, earlier this evening, your body seemed quite ready and willing to bend to me every which way…"

"Grrr…  If you think that, then go ahead and stare at half of me when I'm clothed, you creep-!!"  Deciding to ignore the last part of his statement as there was no way to deny the truth in that, she stood firmly in her position and occasionally eyed her clothes on the sink with the mention of her just-spoken proclamation, inwardly wondering if she had enough time to grab them before he could reach her.  Just as the domineering assassin took one step closer, the auburn-haired youth shot him an acidic glare before lunging out with her free arm in an attempt to snatch her attire from their current position, but after realizing her intent, he moved at the same time and managed to snag her elbow.  She immediately snarled and struggled to yank herself loose from his hold, gritting her teeth when she realized that he did not intend to let her go at all, and when he leaned in just a bit closer, his grasp on her arm tightening as she pulled back, Uriko securely kept her chest covered from his hungry eyes.  Kenji merely sneered at her efforts and elicited lowly, his words shooting through her straight and true as a well-aimed arrow of hopelessness, "Surely you realize that this struggle is futile and nothing more than a waste of your energy, little girl…"

She could not help cringing upon identifying the deadly seriousness in his stormy amber eyes and quickly looked away, wanting the humiliation to end as soon as possible as the frightened brunette shrieked insistently, "Let go of me…!  Just what the heck do you want anyway…?!"

"Hmm, exactly what might I want coming in here with you…?  Do not kid yourself, Uriko…  I am sure that you possess enough intelligence to know such an obvious answer to your rhetorical question," he chuckled a bit at this and the grip on her arm loosened a bit when her struggling slowed.

Her head flew back to peer at him, uncertainty clearly evident in her eyes as she glanced upon the older youth, her twin dark brown orbs shimmering with a sliver of fear as Uriko murmured in a slightly trembling voice, "Y-you're talking about me… aren't you…?"

"You are sharp tonight, my precious little kitten… that is quite an attractive attribute, would you not agree…?"  Her forced partner leaned in even closer and his next provocative words fell to just above a breathy whisper upon her ears, "Allow me to explore what other redeeming qualities are stored within you…"


	25. Unwanted Bed Partner

_A million thanks to Andrew Glasco for his ideas on this chapter, which I'm sure he had fun partaking in, hehe.  For the rest of you, enjoy the sensuality…_

**Chapter 25**

**Unwanted Bed Partner**

Kenji was sent reeling back a bit when a hard slap across his face forced him in that direction; accompanying that action was a growl of anger from the auburn-haired youth, who had briefly taken away the arm covering herself to execute the move.  She hoped that the force of the blow would make him let go of her arm, and he did faltered slightly, but remained focused enough to tighten his grip on her all the more, which made a grimace cross her expression at the growing discomfort.  Twin light eyes glared at the girl with indignation clearly shining through as flames of ire flared up, threatening to engulf her in his fury, and yet he somehow managed to will a grin over his lips, not allowing himself to be taken aback so easily.  The event currently unfolding was a power struggle that the ninja fully intended to win, and to accomplish that meant he had to keep control of the situation by staying one step ahead of Uriko, a challenge he all-too-willingly accepted.

"Tsk, tsk… that was not proper to the rules of the game, little girl."  He chided her lowly, barely able to conceal the dangerous threat lurking in his voice even as he taunted provocatively in his attempt to provoke her into making a foolish move rather than carry out the initiate attack himself.  "Care to try again?" 

The person he was speaking to groaned inwardly in disappointment at the failed antic and quickly covered herself again, keeping her ample body turned away from the stealthy invader as much as he allowed her to, what with his unyielding grip and all.  She tried to step back, edging toward the wall while attempting to tug her arm out of his hold, gritting her teeth in effort as she spat out furiously, "Just what kinda sick game are you trying to play right now?!"

"Life presents the players with countless challenges, little kitten, but there is not always a manual that accompanies each and every obstacle for challenge…  This so happens to be one instance of a game where you play without knowing the rules; there are times where you must adapt to new environments instead of expecting the answers to be handed over without exploration and possible consequence."  As his hold on her became viciously tight, serving as emphasis of his insistently hissed words, Uriko winced visibly, her wrist starting to feel actual pain, this causing her to mindfully inhibit a whimper that was forced to cry deep inside instead of being released.

"How unfair…!  Argh, let go of my arm, darn it… you're hurting me!"  She wailed rather helplessly, her other arm twitching in cohorts with the annoyance of the owner, and she suddenly wished that she was immodest enough to uncover herself and punch her captor in the face when he stepped closer to her just then.  "Grrrr…  S-stay away from me, you creep!"

"Your struggle is useless, little girl…" Kenji merely smirked his reply when she shot him a furious glare in response, and then without warning, the clever brunette lurched forward and made a run for the door, successfully ending up in the main room.  Although it gave her only a slight temporary advantage in that he still had her tightly in his grasp, her mind worked rapidly to think up a plan as she continued dragging him around aimlessly, facing the ninja in case he had a devious plot on his agenda.  She was unknowingly backing toward the cot, and once her companion realized the newly-arisen possibility, a small grin creased his lips as he suddenly stopped trying to pull Uriko back and instead ran with the forward momentum, intentionally knocking her onto the bed.  Not expecting the rush, the girl closed her eyes as she descended, anticipating a hard landing, but when a coarse yet still soft surface met her back, she sighed in relief, though it was short-lived, for when she looked up and saw who now lied atop her, dread immediately lodged itself in her throat.

Immediately sensing her struggle about to ensue, his free arm quickly lurched down to grab her other hand while his legs planted down firmly over her pair to prevent them from being used; with a dark premonition, Kenji descended to her face level and spoke in a low whisper, "No.  You are mine, Uriko… mine!"

"Get your dirty hands off of me, you creep!!"  She shrieked directly at him, all the while struggling in vain as she tried to bend her arms together so she could hide her chest from his eagerly roaming eyes, hating the forced exposure and the sudden disempowerment that had left her so vulnerable.

The dominant assassin cackled in delight at her horror and his expression shone with cruel satisfaction when he further flaunted her current weakness, "You are wasting your energy, little girl, for no one will help you here.  Your pitifully weak arms certainly do not stand the slightest chance in breaking you free from this predicament, so cease struggling, unless your intention is succumbing to eventual exhaustion…"

His heartless words reminded her of the desolation she felt everyday, isolated from her beloved sister and friends… the girl shook her head frantically just then, trying to get rid of his poisonous influence and continued resisting, "No!  Get off, get off, get off!  If you try to… to do anything to me right now, I'll morph and bash your head in!!"

Truthfully, her body was too fatigued to morph in her current state, but she hoped that he did not know of the unfortunate factor… and just to further show his disregard of her person, the ninja calmly elicited, "Pitiful, really, that such spitfire and passion is consumed from a simple exercise of ownership…  I truly find no need to express so much ire, for this is merely usage of my property, little girl."

"I'm not your bloody property!!"  Uriko protested, cringing when his light-shaded eyes briefly danced over the area of her ample chest before lazily climbing back up to meet her dark orbs, a malicious grin accompanying his actions as she hissed her defiance at him.  "And all you're doing is hurting me right now; is that really fun for you or something?!  Why don't you just go twist your own arms if you like pain so much??"

His pupils turned blacker than the depths of abyss when he briefly bared his teeth in a sneer and murmured provocatively, his breath heating her skin, "Ah, so apparently I misinterpreted your previous response…  Do you wish for things to advance then, my precious little kitten…?"

She gasped in shock and her eyes widened to follow suit as came the desperate protest, "What-?  N-no!  I didn't mean that-!"  When it seemed like the ninja cared very little about what she had to say, the frightened brunette turned her face to the side in anticipation, not wanting to be seduced by his alluring kisses like she had been at the lake earlier, this show of resistance making him grin wryly.

"Ah, but you seemed so unsatisfied with our last encounter, dear cat…" Kenji whispered enticingly as he leaned down and allowed his mouth to brush a soft kiss upon the side of her neck, and then he pursing his lips, gliding lightly along her skin while the girl closed her eyes and involuntarily shivered a bit.  "Yes, you seem to agree…  Then allow me to… elaborate the dormant perks for you…"

"Nngh!"  Uriko noised in response as she kept moving her head in a pitiful struggle to avert his attention, still feeling rather cold from having so much of her body exposed to the bare air of the night, but knew that if her captor had his way with her, she would soon be warm again, perhaps even fiery…

"Just relax, my kitten, and enjoy this… you have nothing to be afraid of, I can promise that, for my intention is not to harm you…" he whispered hotly upon her skin, then protruded his tongue past the barrier of his lips and slowly, sensually run a slick path of damp heat up her neck all the way to her jaw line.

"I-I won't!  Get off of me, now-!"  The words came out in almost a plea as her skin began to tingle from where his warm wetness had made his mark on her, and when he nibbled gently around her sensitive throat, she almost wanted to whimper, wondering how it was possible that he did not have any experience, for he knew how to effectively get her…

Immediately mindful of her slight reaction, the ninja smirked a bit and resumed kissing the spot on her neck where his lick had ended and began to trail his lips down to her earlobe, which he immediately took in his possession and gently sucked it, intending to break a bit of her resistance before he tried to appease his own curiosity.  Unfortunate for the feline in this instance, her ears were very sensitive due to her beast counterpart, even as a human, so she could not help gasping at the heat that consumed her delicate skin, though the girl did close her eyes in an effort to concentrate better on resisting.  The stiff position that her arms had been in now were slightly weaker, but her body kept squirming around, which to her, unknowingly heightened his excitement, and in response, Kenji broke off his actions after a few moments and lazily allowed a breathy sigh of contentment to fall directly upon her ear.  After the short pause, he then shifted slightly and began to softly nibble at her throat, causing Uriko to giggle a bit from the ticklish feeling, although this did not deter her determination from wanting him off of her body.

Still conscious enough and very aware of being weighed down by the ninja, the imprisoned brunette doggedly tried to push her forced partner up with her arms, but he merely continued to force his weight upon her and casually trailed his lips back down her jaw line to her neck, his warm breath fanning her skin all the while.  Uriko felt thankful that he was just barely teasing her, so she had anger and modesty to hold onto, thus allowing her the chance to fight back without reacting too much to his embrace, though she did feel afraid that he would break down her guard if he took more drastic measures to grasp for her cooperation.  True enough, Kenji was mildly annoyed that her resistance remained so firm, but he just slowly glided kisses down her skin towards the breastbone, placing a lick here and there, and after arriving at the desired point, he lightly grazed his teeth over the chosen area and sucked it with considerate gentleness.  As he periodically prodded her with his tongue every few moments, the ravished girl squeaked a small protest and bit her lip in an effort to fight the sensation, though her body was confused at the owner's refusal of pleasure and her arms weakened their union slightly.

Kenji still had to consciously withhold a growl of frustration however, for earlier that evening it had been far easier for him to get her to cooperate… but of course, the situation was quite different, and so with that in mind, he lowered his head and kissed downward towards her chest and the two mounds that he desired to explore so much.  His partner squealed softly when she realized what he was doing and bucked her body forcefully, trying to distract her partner from his intentions; being the type to take it slow, the girl had rarely been touched in that area by past boyfriends and still retained her innocence to what passions could be brought from that area.  The intent young man did not allow himself to be deterred, however, as his resolve was set, and he finally reached one of her twin mounds, looking freely upon her amble bosom, acknowledging that the sight of the puckered smoothness aroused a great want in him.  He did not hesitate in pursing his lips over the narrow tip at the height of the chosen soft globe and suckling lightly upon it, using his curiosity and instincts to rub his tongue against her hardened nipple, inwardly pleased when she gasped loudly at his action.

When his mouth closed around the sensitive tip and surrounded it with his heated wetness, the girl instantly knew that felt far more different than her past experiences, and cursed Kenji in her mind; supposedly innocent of passion, how in the world did he know what to do to break down her resistance?  Speaking of the devil, the wicked assassin broke away just then so he could lick over the tight nipple several times, and then once again attacked it with his lips, this time suckling a bit more firmly, while deep down, his desire for her was growing tremendously.  Uriko chewed on her bottom lip and her shut eyes squeezed together even more tightly when his teeth joined in and lightly tugged on her small hardened peak, while her soft pink muscle moved around restlessly within her own mouth, desperately wanting to slick out and taste the air.  Her body shifted restlessly under the hot gyrating tongue of her quick-learning partner and she had consciously tried to prevent a small moan of pleasure from escaping, though she was unsure of what to do about the dull ache that had formed in her other breast, silently whining at being ignored.

Noticing that the girl lying beneath him had started to shiver, the dominant young man grinned shamelessly as he fawned over the one breast for a matter of time like that before he slowly moved to the other and repeated the actions, very perceptive of her reactions.  As his lips ran along her sensitive flesh, Uriko felt the ache growing in her tight nipples, and was unable to inhibit a small moan that elicited from her lips in a defeated hiss, while her head tilted back a bit and her treacherous body raised up to push her breast harder into Kenji's mouth, eager to continue being ravished by him.  The triumphant seducer had to fight back a chuckle of victory, but he did lap his tongue over the soft mound in free lust, his eyes narrowing slowly in the process; taken back by his sudden aggression, the dazed brunette slicked her tongue out partway and made a slight noise of pleasure.  Instead of using her arms to push him away, she wrapped them around his neck, wanting to be closer as she enjoyed his learning, yet quite skillful tongue, dampness slowly coming forth and beginning to gather at the heat of her nether region.

Upon feeing her hands drape about the base of his throat, Kenji felt considerably more at ease, and so he released one of her arms - slowly, of course, as to not make it painfully obvious, knowing full well that it might remind her of the beginning of this present engagement, and that was undesired.  The young ninja brought his now free hand down and glided over to her neglected breast, rubbing over it slowly and without precision at first, just wanting if she would react any stronger to having both of the smooth globes fondled at the same time.  Struck by this sudden sensation, the girl whimpered, the volume a little louder than her precious noises, as the ache within her started spreading; the feel of his fingertips trickling lightly over her breast while his tongue teased the other one was greatly arousing.  As Uriko squirmed a bit more, her leg occasionally rose just enough to rub against the inside of his thighs, causing discomfort to a certain stiff presence that lingered there, more than eager to break free of the clothing restraints and be sheathed in her velvety warmth.

Over time, his fingers began to grow more precise in their target and slowly began to zero in on her nipple, allowing it to brush between his lean digits, while in the meantime, her other breast was spoiled within the warm wetness of his mouth, the sensitive, rarely exposed area being sucked quite firmly.  Gingerly and mindful of possible consequences, the dark-haired ninja slowly released her other arm as well… and once his grip had completely faltered, he allowed the newly-freed hand to begin a gradual descent down the side of her body.  He explored her smooth curves with his eyes were closed, this allowing him to fully concentrate on the precision of his movements, and in fact, were not terribly unlike the katas he engaged in daily, although one difference was the distraction he felt burning below his waist.  This sensation generated a rather uncomfortable feeling for him against the confines of his pants, but Kenji welcomed the new experience rather than respond negatively, as he was thoroughly enjoying the embrace with his attractive young captive anyway.

Dizzy and drowning in desire, Uriko raised her arms and tucked them behind the head of her companion, and then proceeded to trail her slender fingers through the strands of his tousled dark blue hair while a strange urge snatched control over her, causing the girl to move around a bit and grind her hips against her partner.  Of course, he became fully aware of her movements, and acknowledged that they just furthered the discomfort he felt in his lower region, so the ninja tipped his weight off of her a bit and allowed his wandering hand to glide over her abdomen… and continue even lower.  Soon, his fingertips reached the waistline of her lower attire, and even as he kept pampering her breasts, Kenji discreetly snaked his hand down beneath the flimsy barrier and rested his palm upon bare skin, discovering the lack of undergarments… apparently, she went to sleep with just shorts.  While the younger youth was vaguely aware of a warm presence in her private region, and her muscles tensed at the new invasion, her eyes hardened for only a moment before he suddenly increased the pace of teasing her nipples, successfully killing her protest once again.

Her head lolled back as her body shuddered with pent-up tension, her muscles tightening from the way that Kenji was toying with her, making the girl desperately seek release, though such a quest frustrated her because being inexperienced, she did not know exactly how to attain the desired goal.  Accepting control over the situation, the dominant young man slowly glided his hand over her thin curls before moving down between her legs, his fingertips beginning to curiously dance over the unfamiliar territory, her heated entrance.  His eyes opened in curiosity at the warm wetness that his fingers found there, discovering that this exploration was not at all unpleasant, and instead simply started to rub over the soft area, still teasing her breasts with his mouth, effectively drawing a moan from the enticed Uriko.  After inwardly pondering over whether or not to touch her more intimately, he made a quick decision and slid his other arm underneath her back to bring her supple form closer to his own body, this allowing his lean digits to firmly feel her femininity.

The impassioned sixteen-year-old released a breathy cry when his fingertips casually glided over the small, sensitive nub just above her entrance, while her hands immediately reached out to clutch his arms tightly, her nails digging slightly into his skin.  His keen perception serving him well in this encounter, Kenji noted her reaction with more than a mild interest, as his acute attention to detail making it fortunate that he was able to easily relocate the pleasure point and brushed over it just a tad firmer, this time gauging a moan from his partner.  A curious, yet triumphant grin touched his lips at the discovery and he thought perhaps repeatedly giving her that sensation would stop her from fighting him… for if he could elicit such a reaction from her simply by touching one spot, it was certainly something to remember indeed.  His tongue grew a bit tired in that time, but did not relent upon the breast, resting the wet, working muscle as he sucked her with a bit more pressure while the young man himself felt a desperate need for relief but ignored it as best he could, content with enjoying her body for the time being.

The twin torture made her head swim dazedly, and the auburn-haired youth was unable to control herself now, and again arched her back to get closer to the delicious sensations flickering her nerves, and once she did so, her partner grinned even as he continued to suck her.  His fingers trailed down a bit, and the owner was surprised to find that his fingers could slide inward with a little pressure, this causing Uriko to gasp out her breaths when he did enter her, and the perceptive ninja noted how very wet and warm it felt inside.  The sudden invasion into her most private sanctuary was startlingly new, and the virginal girl tried to grip a conscious thought of throwing Kenji off, but when the tip of his tongue flicked at her nipple more firmly that moment and his teeth nibbled its small sides, she moaned in slight frustration.  While his fingers played with her heated femininity, she felt him also rubbing the hardening nub above her lips, making the tension of pleasure increase considerably, and if he continued playing with her for a little while longer, she would not be able to fight back the inner explosion.

A helpless look came over her face, deeming the pleasured female almost utterly vulnerable, but a small dormant part of her did still resist the pleasure that Kenji was giving her, though it was ironic that the more she fought him when he kept teasing her, the harder her release would come from tension building up so much.  His gentle stroking caused more wetness to flow down, especially when his thumb pressed just a bit more firmly upon her sensitive clit, which depleted the obstacle of dryness causing pain and gave him a further advantage.  He continued to work over the small nub, honestly unsure of its name or purpose, but felt certain of the reaction that it drew from Uriko - her increased breathing and bodily reactions was evidence enough of that for him, and he wanted to see just how far he could drive her…  His index and middle fingers, meanwhile, continued playing inside her curiously, the exploration new for the inexperienced ninja as it was for her, and soon, he realized just how alluring the wet warmth of her arousal was to him, as his own desire pressed very noticeably against his sweatpants.

Despite the intensity of his growing need for her, the curious explorer shrugged it off, far more interested in concentrating on the current event than anything else, and while not completely sure how to satisfy his hunger, he knew it had something to do with the girl he was pleasuring.  The aforementioned young female had a fine sheen of sweat glistening on her forehead as her body writhed restlessly underneath Kenji, this action obviously bringing his anatomy additional discomfort, and he had to consciously withhold a groan from escaping.  Her nipples were getting even harder if that was possible, aching with a need that the owner could not identify, only aware of being oh, so close to reaching a certain peak, like climbing up a long and tense peak to achieve great satisfaction…  Although unaware of exactly what sensations she presently enjoyed, the tireless ninja certainly acknowledged that he was bringing her to a state of euphoria, coaxing his submissive captive to such sensations that her earlier protests suddenly no longer mattered – and naturally, that little tidbit of information pleased him greatly.

His mouth continued to work over one breast intently while he held her body in close proximity to his own, and rather possessively, in fact, as if Uriko already belonged to him, despite the obvious fact that the two had only engaged in one battle of their deal thus far.  The southern-bound hand continued to fondle the girl in her most delicate area, and the two fingers penetrating inside of her pressed inward as deeply as allowed just then, while his thumb outside kept fondling the strange nub, the older teen becoming intrigued when he felt it harden, just as her nipples had earlier.  Figuring that this was a physical expression of her heightening arousal, Kenji moved over her clit faster, determined to bring her further up the seemingly-endless ladder of pleasure that he himself had presented to her in the first place.  Like her, he was sweating lightly as his desire for this alluring beauty grew considerably, his stiff length reacting from the warmth of her body and the sheer intensity of his advances, almost aching with the need to release tension in a way that had not yet been experienced by the virginal ninja…

When the tension became too much and a climatic explosion erupted within her body, twin brown eyes shot open to gaze intensely at the ceiling, needing a focal point for mental support, and still the girl gripped her partner tightly while also burying her face into the hollow curve of his throat.  This being her first time experiencing such a powerful sensation, she was unsure of how to respond and gave into her feline instincts, immediately opening her mouth to bite Kenji on his shoulder, the action purely reflexive as aftermath of finally having great tension freed.  Unable to hold it in, a loud moan spilled forth from her lips while she dampened his fingers even more with the additional release of wetness from her body's reaction to his stimulation, to which the young man glanced up at her in curiosity.  He mumbled a slight noise of surprise, deducting that something…special…had occurred when she vocalized her feelings, and even opting to sink her teeth into him, and although he was not completely sure what happened to her, he felt satisfied enough with the look of bliss he found on her face at that moment.

Kenji was admittedly surprised what had just transpired, but his inexperience deemed him unable to realize that with her release, she needed a break from his rubbing, and so his fingers still worked inside of her, his thumb actually increasing the pressure on her clit a bit.  After descending from the overwhelming state of ecstasy a little bit later, the brunette had a dazed look in her eyes from the new experience of her first climax, but it was soon replaced by a wince when she felt the ninja pressing her sensitive nub so firmly.  When the feeling began to grow painful, reality slammed into her with the reminder that he frequently brought her such agony, as even though she had succumbed to him, she recalled that her captor forced this embrace on her, teasing and manipulating until he got his way.  That startling revelation firmly sticking in her mind, Uriko cried out just then and began to thrash frantically, her body twisting in an attempt to get away from the pain he was bringing her; "A-augh!  S-stop doing that, please-!  It hurts, ohh…!"

Thoroughly startled by her sudden change in movement, and unknowing of its cause, the cobalt-haired young man withdrew his soaked hand from her shorts and retracted his arm from underneath her back, giving his partner needed space.  He looked down at her in obvious and rightful confusion; their embrace had been going so well, and the cries of pain previously noised from her truly baffled him, but he did not make any smug remarks or the like, instead opting to wait for her explanation.  None came immediately; however, when Uriko scooted away from the ninja just then and snatched the blanket up in the process, covering herself up as bewilderment flickered in her eyes, accurately mirroring his present feelings.  She tensed her muscles purposely, trying to relieve the burning discomfort down below, all the while wondering why she even had to do such a thing; the climax he brought her felt wonderful, but it became so painful afterwards… and the reason eluded her as well.

"Oww… nngh…  oh, that hurt…" the virginal girl whimpered softly as she glanced at Kenji, a silent plea in her dark wounded eyes for his understanding, even though she easily identified his burning curiosity in wanting to know what had caused the sudden change in atmosphere.

In spite of all the things he could have said to likely send chills down her spine, the natural question, as plain and simple as it was, happened to be the only one that came out of his mouth; "…What in the world brought you pain so abruptly?  I could have sworn that you were… earnestly enjoying what I was doing to you."

Dazed with her own inner questions, she glanced at him absentmindedly and mused in a quiet, disbelieving tone, "I-I… don't know…  It… it just started hurting after I-… umm…" Thanks to education and the tidbits of information she occasionally heard floating amongst her classmates, Uriko was not completely ignorant of the pleasure she had just experienced, but of course, felt thoroughly uncomfortable at the thought of explaining it to the still sexually-innocent Kenji.

"......"  He noticed her trail off, and so the silence itself was obvious to him that she knew, and slightly resentful of being left in the dark, he inquired shamelessly, albeit roughness underlying his words, "After what?  When you elicited that loud moan?"

She blushed furiously at the mention, and she felt a gulp of nervousness lumped in her throat at the very recent memory as her mind frantically searched for a weaker substitute of an explanation that would be less embarrassing to inform him of; "Y-yeah, after that… um, thing happened… a-and I-I bit you…"

"-And a wet fluid of some sort flowed from you at that time as well…" he looked down at his hand then, the fingers still damp with the physical evidence of her desire, and this brought him a strangely appealing feeling, just having the simple knowledge that it was her wetness clinging to his skin.  "And then?"

"A-after that, it… it hurt when y-you were p-pressing so h-hard…" Finding his blatant statements to be just a bit crude, Uriko cringed from his accurate words and stammered through a very brief explanation, realizing that the aftermath of such delicious and newly discovered sensations were beginning to affect her.  Now that she had taken a moment to rest, her body felt very alive and almost desired to experience another climax as the girl silently regarded Kenji in his own state of curiosity, a familiar ache tightening inside of her when their eyes met just then.  He gazed at her full-on and shamelessly, freely allowing his captive to acknowledge the lust still insistently lingering in his light irises, even in spite of the obvious confusion he felt, but it was probably due to his nature that he could appear so strong.  The confident and domineering assassin despised showing any signs of weakness, after all, so he only displayed his hard and unyielding will that wanted her submission once again, but she desperately pushed her inward wanton desire away…

"I… see."  The cobalt-haired ninja mused quietly after an endless moment of tranquility, finally beginning to understand how he had hurt her, and although he was still not sure why, he could deal with the workings of it, and silently vowed that he would never make that mistake again.  He truly had not intended to bring her pain, and could blame the unfortunate results on his inexperienced and instinctual exploring, but the fact remain that he was the cause of her demise, so he willingly took the responsibility and insisted on improving considerably next time.  This promise cemented in his mind, he scooted just a bit closer to the shivering young female, but made no further advance, even though his own arousal had admittedly only subsided a little, and was still pressing quite noticeable against his sweatpants.  But of course, given the slightly tense situation, Kenji made no movements to call attention to that discomfort, as there were other issues to be dissolved with before something resembling the lines of their heated embrace could occur in the near future.  "Judging by your noise and reaction, it is safe to deduct that you were at least satisfied for a time… correct?"

Her cheeks were crimson in silent admission; there was no need for words in that instance and her companion instantly found his answer, smirking just a tad even as she turned her face away, ashamed for giving into his advances so willingly, feeling as promiscuous and immoral as he had labeled her sometime before…

Sensing her hesitation, he took that chance to move closer to Uriko once again and craned his neck around towards her before he cupped her chin in his dry hand and gently nudged her to turn towards him, obviously assuming that her current quiescent mood would allow him to repeat their previous encounter…


	26. Denying The Truth

_Big thanks and major kudos to Andrew Glasco for his ideas on this chapter. Also, there is another scene in here dedicated to IndigoSiren._

**Chapter 26**

**Denying The Truth**

For a second, Uriko felt herself being drawn to him… willingly returning to the warmth of his hand and the memory of their shared embrace; how powerful this act of eroticism was, possessing the deadly ability to beguile her into letting him have his way with her. Innocent as she was, the young girl just had her first experience being a victim of passion and succumbed due to her own curiosity and desire of wanting to further the fire dancing through her veins, even serving as a silent admission of her mild attraction toward Kenji. But as their faces got closer, she detected the lust in his eyes and realized her position, how he wanted her for the pure physicality – she was still his captive and he only wanted her body to satisfy his virile desires, very likely nothing more than that. Refusing to be used in such a manner, she slapped his hand away and drew the blanket more tightly against her body, determined not to become entangled in his web again as she shook her head vigorously and cried out in a hoarse tone, "No! No… we can't-!"

As calm and collected as ever, the dark-haired ninja was unabashed and comfortably allowed his next provocative words to linger in the air, "And another astonishing turnabout to further this ever-engrossing game… though I must admit that you cause me bewilderment on occasional instances, kitten. After all, only moments ago your voice urged me on, and yet now your attitude has completely changed to the opposite stance. How fickle…"

"That was a mistake…! A mistake that shouldn't have happened… oh, why did I-I… argh…" his younger companion just kept shaking her head and even released her hold on the blanket to cover her ears, trying to blocking out his taunting statements that admittedly shook up her own resolve on her person. There truly was mental warfare going inside her head at the moment, multiple self-beatings at the weakness that made her succumb, as well as sizable portions of deep shame that forced her to admit she liked the pleasure Kenji had given her. Of course, Uriko would never admit that little tidbit of information to him, for he could easily hold it as a sort of mental weapon over her in the future, but one having to live with the truth somehow felt worse; the fact remained that he tempted her, and she fell for it. A long trickle of tears started gliding down her smooth cheeks at the wrenching revelation, leaving nothing but doubt and confusion as the tormented girl sobbed quietly and turned her face away to hide the new display of victimization…

Her tears stirred his anger, oddly enough, and made him want to strike some sense into the girl, but managed to restrain himself; his reasoning for the desired action was that he had pleasured her only minutes before, so why would she be crying over it now? "A mistake…?" Kenji repeated in a low, controlled tone, though he practically growled out the next words, "Interesting, truly, how you did not utter an expression of regret a single time while our…activities…were occurring, my precious little kitten…"

She did shudder a bit, knowing full well that she could not lie and deny that she had indeed enjoyed their experience together, but… "It-it was new! And… really strange! I… I just wasn't expecting it to feel… to feel like that… Y-you've gotta admit, it was weird to you too, Kenji!!"

He shifted his weight back, placing his hands upon the bed to prop his weight up as he regarded his slightly-hysterical companion through narrowed eyes. "Labeling the experience as 'weird' is a tad harsh, I believe… after all, many times it has tended to have a negative connotation; I would rather think fondly of our embrace. I suppose it is differences like that which make us polar opposites. But I am honestly curious, why do you so adamantly refuse to admit that you enjoyed it? …And that you want more, to keep on going?"

Stung by the underlying truth, Uriko flung her arms at him as if she were trying to throw the essence of his words away from her vicinity; "'Cause… because I'm ashamed! You have no dignity, Kenji… but then again, you don't know how it feels to be a normal person with morals anyway, so of course you wouldn't understand why I feel stressed out about this…"

The latter part of her statement pricked his nerves a bit and he almost frowned, but twisted it into a strange form of grin as the level-headed assassin hissed heatedly, "Shame…? No, my dear cat, I believe you are upset because you wantonly allowed a man that you despise to violate your body, and you enjoyed every second of it, even responded to help his actions, almost like a little harlot succumbing to her master's commands… Hah, so you see, I can identify the reason behind your dilemma quite well…"

The label he just tagged onto her person made the girl sneer at him furiously, not even bothering to hide the fact that she was seething from what he said, "A man? Yeah right, you're not even a boy! You're just a creep, a slug even lower than dirt! And I'm not a whore, so stop wishing I was one! The only thing you actually said that's true just now is that I-I hate you! You're never gonna touch me again, you hear that?!"

He allowed her comments to reach him, but not one of them truly found his ears, and even smirked triumphantly to show his lack of concern as he elicited provokingly, "Put down your claws, little kitten… Spew forth whatever you wish, but one fact will always remain the truth, and you cannot escape the knowledge that you did give yourself to me."

At that reminder, anger just ignited within her again, and the teenage brunette shrieked her next words forcefully, although she was really trying to convince herself more than Kenji, "I-I did _not_, darn it! You f-forced me! You just barged in when I was changing and grabbed me, and not to mention hurt my arm like heck, you jerk! Then you shoved me down and the bed and forced yourself on me!!"

The dark-haired ninja paid little heed to her passion and laughed freely; "You might be able to convince others of that, Uriko… but unfortunately for you, your efforts are wasted here, for you and I, we both undoubtedly know the truth… I did not mistake feeling you press yourself closer to me… your hips wriggling in delight… the loud moan you released after you bit me… and of course, who could forget the way your body responded so willingly to the pleasure that I gave to you…"

Her lower lip trembling from fury, the thoroughly-annoyed Uriko ripped the blanket off of the bed and wrapped it tightly around her body as she strolled over to the bathroom with the intention of getting fully dressed this time, and thoughts plagued her on the way. _Argh, just walk away, walk away, walk away…! Kenji's just trying to poison my mind with those horrible thoughts – what he's saying isn't true, darn it! I'm not a loose little whore, or one of those cheap hussies he probably goes to every night; I didn't give myself to him, he bloody forced me!!_

His taunting, chilling laugh found its way to her while she walked, and his eyes trained intently upon her slender form as she left the main room and escaped into the lavatory, slamming the door shut loudly before three clicks sounded to inform that she had checked the lock carefully. Kenji was unfazed by her impassioned declarations; he knew what had happened between them, and now could entice her if he wished, and aside from that, he had been in far more dangerous situations, so the mere thought of this girl being a threat mildly amused him at most. Comforted by his renewal of confidence, his laughter finally died down to a chuckle upon realizing that his captive was fully aware of what transpired, and no matter how much she tried to deny it, he would always be right should he bring up the incident in the future. Even better, given the right situation, he could have her again… that thought alone excited him, arousing a now familiar feeling below the waistline, but the young ninja merely laid back on the bed and reflected on the evening, thinking of the many twists and turns, both for and against him… and yet in the end, he had won the night – of that he was completely certain.

Inside the small bathroom, Uriko set the blanket over the downed toilet seat cover and quickly grabbed the nightshirt that had been left on the counter, draping it over her body, grateful for a barrier at least, but felt angry that it had come at this time, which was far too late… Trying to shake off the memory, she performed her nightly pre-bed duties, all the while ignoring the slight ache at her nether regions, and eventually emerged from the facilities with the large comforter encircling her figure again. She walked forward, passing by the bed to reach her bag and on the way, yanked off the sheet from around her form and threw it at the smirking face of her captor, who had sat up when she re-entered the room, and allowed her the small pleasure of hitting him in the face. The still-blushing girl unzipped the container of her belongings and withdrew a large sweater with the arms far too long, but nonetheless, she threw that over her shirt and when it draped down to mid-thigh, she finally felt safe enough to be around the cleverly manipulative ninja.

Smirking arrogantly in response, the seventeen-year-old tossed the blanket aside out to the bed's length in one easy motion, undisturbed by the pathetic attempt of an attack, and then glanced at his young female captive, commenting casually, "This has been quite an interesting evening, even I must admit… but let us rest now. I am sure that we both have much to anticipate for tomorrow, after all."

"Go to hell," she hissed at him vigorously in a rare show of great aggravation, as if the way she just cursed was any indication; he glared at her silently but only made a gesture toward the cot, which caused the girl to shudder at the mere concept of resting next to him. Firmly making a decision in her mind, Uriko reached out just far enough to yank the blanket back into her grasp, as well as the only pillow on the bed before stomping over to where the dresser was located, a safe distance away and across the room. Under his watchful eyes, she wrapped the long comforter securely around her form to prevent getting dirty from the floor and plopped right down, resting her head onto the pillow as she faced her captor, and submitting to a childish urge, stuck her tongue out at Kenji. A licentious smile curved his lips as he sought to taunt and provoke the younger youth, rather enjoying this new game she had just initiated, "The floor is suddenly more inviting than the bed? Or are you just cowering because you are so afraid of the truth of your true feelings, my precious little kitten…?"

"I'm not list-ening…" the earthbound figure replied in a sing-a-long, melodic tone as she covered her ears and closed her eyes, though truthfully for once, she was cursing her zoanthrope counterpart for being a feline and having great hearing to pick up everything he said. Still, she refused to let the domineering ninja know of that little factor and remained stationary, burrowing deeper into the blanket until only half of her head was bared to naked air, this action making a peculiar light shine in the antagonist's intense amber eyes…

"Oh, but I believe you are… otherwise, you would have no reason to burrow deeper into your hole like a frightened little mole as you just did now," - his gaze stayed trained on her intently, quiet, confident, never wavering – "You hide because you know I speak the truth, Uriko…"

"Brrr…" she shivered just then, rustling in her blanket as she hugged her fists to her heart protectively, drawing inner strength to defend herself from his mental molestation; "What an annoying, shrill wind that's blowing in here tonight… I sure wish it'd go outside where it belongs…"

Though his words were cool and confident, his eyes were bitterly icy as he elicited provocatively, "What a shame that you only see atrocity, for I find the breeze to be in perfect harmony, my precious kitten… it falls upon my skin and presents a feeling that I lacked before that moment, granting me new knowledge and an undeniable, intoxicating sense of strength… I find nothing but positive attributes, and yet interestingly enough, the truth that this draft brings tonight apparently draws different feelings from those that are too picky and spoiled to appreciate such generosity…"

"Don't make fun of endearments, you jerk!" She scowled ferociously at him, angry that he cleverly turned her own insult against her with his baffling, selectively poetic way of speaking, "Other people actually say what they mean, and how dare you make fun of them for not being all confusing and telling how they feel, just like it is…!"

"Yes, yes, I am aware that you find my speech offensive, my dear cat…" the ninja answered with a smooth drawl, very effectively keeping control of his emotions; "But I wonder, do you truly think my way of speaking is abhorrent, or are you simply too dimwitted to understand the meaning of what I say?"

Aggravated, she gritted her teeth slightly and ground out, "I'm not stupid just 'cause I think the way you talk is weird and confusing! Sheesh, you're even worse than Master Long sometimes…! Argh, forget it… just shut up already and let me go to sleep!"

"Well, if that is what you wish to have… then you will be allowed that luxury when you return to your rightful place, Uriko." Kenji bit off coldly, unyielding steel in his tone. "How intriguing your actions are… I was always under the impression that kittens were spoiled rotten, taking nothing but the best in every situation they are presented, and yet with you, there is an open spot upon the bed, and you would rather choose to rest upon the cold floor."

"That's 'cause this spot _is_ the best place in the room… it's away from you!" She briefly laughed, the expression of amusement sounding rather bitter but ever so catty to match that of her zoanthrope counterpart as she noised smugly, "Meow, Kenji…"

"…Stubborn as a mule, I believe that is the known saying," he mused calmly with a casual shake of his head, though his eyes did take on a curious light just then, suggesting that the ninja was not utterly pleased with her current behavior; "Will you not comply then?"

"Sheesh, of course not!" Uriko voiced quite forcefully and shivered at the thought of his body looming over hers in the bed while she was sleeping, teasing and toying with her senses and beguiling her mind so skillfully, as he just did not too long ago… "I don't wanna sleep next to you…! Y-you'll try to force me again…"

He chuckled darkly and waved her words away dismissively while a hard edge of amusement formed over his expression when he repeated her accusation, "'Force', you say… hah, that is such an inappropriate word for what we shared, Uriko… You had better be mindful of where you direct your anger to, for you received that which you asked in the first place… you could have stopped me, used your arms to push me away, but you just pressed yourself closer and moaned for more…"

"Grrrrrr… no! Shut up! You're lying!!" Her eye twitched in visible anger at his provocative words, but then the girl had to bury her face into the pillow and mentally fought away the erotic memory of his lips teasing her body and indeed drawing moans of pleasure and consent from her accursed, treacherous self when he had brought her to a blistering climax…

Unfazed by her furious cry, he chuckled lowly, his eyes still trained intently upon her blanket-wrapped form, easily identifying the unease and discomfort she felt by the rigid position, "An odd form of hatred, indeed…"

"Would you please just leave me alone now…? I wanna go to sleep…" her voice was actually soft and light as she pleaded and the girl released a heavy sigh at his most recent remark, tired of wasting her time fighting with him; tears pricked at her eyes when she murmured softly, "Oh, sis… I wish I was home so bad...! I wanna get outta here… I can't stand this, someone trying to control my life…!"

The ninja shot a bleak glare to her back, relishing in his power of authority over the feeble victim and his next words were flat, not laced with any amusement or uncertainty, only straight coldness: "You are never going home again, Uriko Nonomura."

The bitter, dark possibility of his statement slammed into her with full force, and thankful that her back was turned to him, Uriko allowed tears to slide down her cheeks freely as she squeezed her eyes shut and tried to fight off the desolation discreetly seeping in. "I-I will too, darn it! A-as soon as you start our next battle already, I-I'll beat you and be halfway home! I'll… I'll do whatever it takes to beat you, Kenji, I promise…"

"Your training still has far to come; if you are serious about improving, then tomorrow, we shall spar and I will continue teaching you. Hrmp, you will need to be at your absolute best if you wish to stand a chance against me, amateur…"

Though she was thinking of that same idea, still confused in the gray area of why he would assist her, the Kenpo learner growled when he insulted her fighting disadvantage again; "Okay, we will! I still don't get why you're helping me with this… but I'm definitely gonna be careful around you 'cause it's probably for some evil purpose as usual."

"Huh… believe whatever you wish, little girl," he snorted and slanted his head to the side in an expression of nonchalance, "But you will undoubtedly benefit from my knowledge, and witness considerable improvement in your technique through my guidance, so with those rewards to receive, you have no need for a reason or explanation for my actions." The young assassin had absolute confidence in his words, for while he was thrilled with the possibility of having a challenging fight with the girl, truly, the thought that she may actually defeat him and win their deal was a bad jest at most.

"Blah, blah, blah…" Feeling fatigue settle too comfortably into her body, she yawned loudly and snuggled even deeper into the blanket, finally feeling warm after experiencing so much bitter iciness both physically and mentally over the course of just a few nightly hours. "Holy Mackerel, it must be really late by now! Go to sleep already, you darn owl…"

"Of course, I would love to do so…" he grinned as he spoke while twisting his legs over the side of the bed and stood up, starting over towards his captive with a mysterious glint in his eyes and his posture its usual tall and proud stature. With her eyes closed, Uriko was unable to detect his presence even when his shadow loomed over her form, although she felt a bit surprised that he had finally agreed with her, and slight gratitude for the serenity of the current atmosphere. When he reached his destination, Kenji knelt down beside the girl in silence, looking upon her face in undeniable amusement, knowing full well with a smug smirk that her peaceful expression would be broken in mere moments. He reached down and securely grabbed her lightweight form in his arms, and simply slung her over his shoulder, to which she screeched aloud in surprise and instantly began to struggled, but unfortunately had entangled herself in the blanket too much to offer steadfast resistance.

"_Ack!_ What the heck do you think you're doing?! Hey, put me down right now, you creep!!" She protested heatedly even as the darker-haired teenager simply chuckled in response and casually walked back to the bed, plopping his unwilling accomplice down upon the mattress only a moment later, of course much to her disapproval. As soon as she regained footing, the brunette frantically scrambled to unravel herself from the blanket, after succeeding when quite a few humiliating minutes passed, she shot Kenji a cold glare and tried to step past him in an attempt to leave the bed. He simply shot an arm out to impede her forward step, and in response, the usually soft-spoken girl eyed him evenly, her irises filled with a bleak deadliness that was rare in her character as the muscles throughout her body tightened with rigid tension. She allowed the silent emotion in her mahogany pools to convey her feelings about the adversary to the corresponding person, and her arm soon flew up as well, a clenched fist hovering mere inches away from coming into contact with his nose.

"Let… me… go…" she growled lowly.

But unfortunately for her, the ninja had been in many situations requiring much more nerve than this current one, and although he felt just a bit impressed by her show of strength, he was not the slightest bit intimidated by the foolish courageousness, so he simply smirked and gave a command. "Such aggression over such a small, tedious little factor… Lay down and go to sleep, Uriko. Despite what you might think would happen from resting beside me, I will assure you right now that I have no ill intentions toward you, nor currently harbor the desire to engage in another encounter resembling our most recent one. This has been a long, trying night for the both of us, and I simply wish to rest in preparation for our training session tomorrow."

"I never know what to expect from you…" she confessed softly, but wanting to end the ugliness of the situation, she finally decided to believe him for now and turned around to lie down upon the cot, though inwardly noted to herself that she would indeed hit him if he broke his word. The tentative girl snagged most of the blanket and tucked the material underneath her chin, trying to get rid of the goose bumps that prickled her arms at being so close to the antagonist again; she could never sleep on this bed again without remembering what they shared. Closing her eyes and trying to quickly succumb to unconsciousness, she scowled viciously under her breath, still feeling resentful toward the older youth for touching her the way he did earlier, and was also angry at herself for not fighting him off. Detecting unease and very obvious tension stiffening her muscles, Kenji just smirked a tad before he descended right next to her, noting that it certainly did feel good to rest against the pillow, as it had been quite an eventful night.

Rather content in how the evening had turned out overall, the young ninja brushed off the portion of the bed sheet that he was left with, and resumed his usual rigid position of slumber as he closed his eyes and allowed his body to slow its action, drifting into a peaceful sleep.

-----

"Good night, you two…"

With a slow wave, the young woman gave the couple a soft smile, and then abruptly turned around to trail off home on her own; she had walked two of her good friends back to their residence after the meeting and turned down an invitation to stay over for a visit. She knew their intentions were selfless and very considerate, but felt that it more than slightly unnecessary to intrude on a private world just because she happened to be unattached, and her younger sister was still away on her camping trip. A little over a week had passed and the dark-haired nurse had not yet heard from Uriko, tried to call the place but was unable to locate the number, although even with the temptation of actually traveling up there, she finally decided to be optimistically trusting. Goodness knew how embarrassed the sixteen-year-old would be, having a relative check up on her as if she were a mere child and could not take care of herself, so Alice restrained herself from the notion and concentrated on other areas that needed attention.

The meeting of the resistance group had gone considerably well, given the circumstances – Alan, a former war veteran and their leading figure, just recently recovered from his injuries of the last intense encounter with the ZLF, was already back up and running about. He expressed the desire to return to his birth country of France in the next few days and start spreading news of the fight for peaceful coexistence around to the rest of the world, since the prejudicial problem did not only lie in Japan, of course. His wife protested the vigorous actions, rightfully thinking it foolish that he could possibly be risking his health and even Jane Gado, his battle-loving daughter, wanted him to keep resting, but he was stubborn enough to grudgingly refuse their requests. Alice worried about his well-being at times, but the sturdy lion zoanthrope had assured her of his confidence in her nursing abilities on more than one occasion, so she promised to try her best in serving as the group's top healer and left it at that.

As she walked home now, the young woman thought about the sadder side of the issues discussed at the gathering earlier: the death toll, where the results of the last battle had been counted and revealed that five of their members died on the field. There were a few injured parties recovering at her hospital, and the hope of their return to normalcy was fairly positive, but the majority of sympathy and compassion had to be shed for the family of those recently, unfortunately deceased. When she glanced around at the room and witnessed the anguished tears, desolation tainting the expressions of several of her fellow allies, Alice felt her heart ache for them, but with the glimpse into their soul even dealt her a rather harsh reprisal. She saw herself reflected in their eyes, identified the agony of having lost a loved one as a consequence of this necessary, yet long-drawn and will-bearing war of both fighting to achieve coexistence, while simultaneously fending off the villainous zoanthropes that wanted to use violence and terror to dominate humanity.

Speaking of which, the Zoanthrope Liberation Front had been riling up a bit of activity as the day before, recently striking a summer school that was exclusively of human students, and once again gave innocent bystanders the idea that all zoanthropes were brutal, terrorizing figures. The ZLF started the mid-afternoon event off by bombing the library of the learning facility, which of course had a few casualties right then and there, but then they carried the atrocity further by spreading fire around to the woodlands located right behind the building. Their evil deed done, they left moments later, and firefighters and other nearby volunteers rushed to the scene soon after that, trying their best to beat down the roaring flames while those trapped inside were carefully, but too slowly ejected. Worse, when the resistance group had come in to save the frightened and defenseless teenagers, they had also been scorned and throw in the same category as the adversaries, the hysterical humans unable to distinguish the difference between friend and foe.

Later that night on the news, blame had been placed not only on the ZLF, but all other zoanthropes as well, which dampened the spirits of the resistance group and caused a few of the radical members to vocalize their feelings of hopelessness in the entire situation. The selected leading figures had their hands full calming everyone down and assuring that there was a purpose in the fight, the Liberation Front _would_ eventually fall for good to prevail in the world, but the negativity still discreetly lingered about. Growing a bit melancholic at the memories, the twenty-four-year-old nurse sighed heavily and continued strolling down the path that would eventually lead her back home, though inwardly she felt reluctant in returning to a silent and empty facility. When she finally approached the steps climbing up to her house, she threw one last glance over her shoulder, a silent attempt to leave the problems outside before retreating into family quarters that only deserved optimism and prosperity.

"No news is good news, I suppose…" she murmured quietly as she opened the door stepped over the threshold, temporarily filing away the dark and serious topics of bitter reality, instead replacing her contemplative thoughts with the events of tomorrow.


	27. Veil Of Darkness

_As usual, much thanks to Andrew Glasco for helping me with ideas on this chapter, but I'm proud to say that I wrote the insightful portion on Kenji all by myself, hehe.  This chapter is dedicated to VGuyver for wanting to see what's going on in the outside world._

**Chapter 27**

**Veil Of Darkness**

          Though he might not seem to be a person who enjoyed many pleasures, what with his occupation and lifestyle, the top assassin of the Zoanthrope Liberation Front, young ninja Kenji was admittedly very fond of one thing: the endless bleak void of the night.

          It was his shield and solace, the only source of true tranquility that he could envelope himself in without having to forcefully silence someone first; very few other activities matched his desire for the prevailing darkness born from nature.  His tasks were best completed under the aforementioned circumstances, for there was no greater pleasure than having such an overwhelming veil hiding the execution of a malicious deed from unwanted eyes that always lingered somewhere about.  Even as he took advantage of the stealth covering his actions, the night also intoxicated the devoted killer with power, fed him strength that was surpassed by the abilities granted to him from his beast form, but just that and nothing else.  Sometimes, he thought it rather unfortunate that he had to keep himself in such good condition so he was unable to wander around outside when dusk passed countless hours ago, and yet his undying loyalty managed to override the small discomfort.

          On the night following the one when he and the young female captive had shared their embrace, Kenji was out of the confines of the cottage and in the forest, traveling through the area swiftly and silently, with a purpose clear in mind.  His eyes trained on each aspect of his surroundings with deadly accuracy, an important ability of perception and awareness he had developed from the past years of working as a killer, and happened to be an attribute that assisted him greatly on several occasions.  Though obviously much younger than the top two leaders of his group, the dark-haired ninja was just underneath their ranks, and still high overall as the top assassin, due to his dedicated hard work through sweat and blood to achieve his current position.  Of course, the seventeen-year-old successor was well-aware of his own superiority over the majority of the other henchmen, and would not hesitate to use that authoritarian power when necessary, but he had a great deal of respect for those that were higher than him.

The ZLF members all worked together in a systematic manner and held their place in society very solidly, but there was no one in the group that the young ninja would trust to be partnered with in an assignment, much less his life – hence his desire for solitude.  In his world where acts of kindness actually brought suspicion, an ally was just a label to distinguish those to be attacked, while the others were a possible help or hindrance depending on the usage they could serve after the end of a fierce battle.  Kenji treated everyone with equal indifference, and cooperated when it was ordered of him or if it would bring about a greater outcome in an event, but allowed nobody to get close enough to really know his intimate thoughts or what he contemplated inside his mind.  In fact, a few of his comrades honestly felt a bit apprehensive around him at times, especially right after he returned from one of his usual successful missions and expressed a rare sensation of pleasure, for that was when he would not sustain any disturbance to his mood.

          In the present moment of events, cobalt-haired teenager breezed through the familiarity of the woods and soon burst into the outside world of humans and their society that desired normalcy, the very same disgusting setting that his captive was fighting so eagerly for.  His eyes narrowed at the sight of the aforementioned creatures that detested his kind to the prejudicial point based on the mere difference in genes, and the very reminder alone renewed his adamant aspiration toward justice, and admittedly vengeance as well.  Why Uriko wanted to suppress her true heritage in order to fit in and associate with these people was beyond his understanding… she must have had absolutely no pride in her zoanthrope abilities, which explained her behavior, although it also infuriated him.  Those with the same mindset as her were deemed traitors, and could be held just as responsible for being prejudiced against the unique beings with animalistic counterparts merely by cooperating with the enemy and furthering _their_ hateful cause.

_She has been brainwashed by those filthy humans…_ he cursed silently in his mind, surprised to feel a twinge of pity for the young girl that he thought to be fooled and disillusioned by the enemy party; but then again, she knew full well that she could join his side in an instant.  Uriko was currently weak, but she had great potential to become very strong, and since his master expressed such great interest in using her as a specimen, the ninja presumed that deep down inside, she possessed some hidden ability yet to be tapped into.  Despite his resentment of her childish and naïve mindset, he had still kept his word in waiting for her recovery, and that morning, when she sheepishly admitted to her body condition not feeling up to engaging in a sparring session with him, he respected her honesty and backed off.  No matter how fiendish Kenji acted toward her at times, he honored the promise he had made to her in the beginning, and if she did somehow manage to win over him in their deal, he would give the girl her freedom as earned and deserved, but until then…

          The young assassin walked down a solitary sidewalk now, taking note of the other inhabitants of the area and giving a curt nod to those that he recognized as he headed for the building that housed his reason for leaving the cottage on that particular night.  It was time to make a report on his progress with the female zoanthrope he captured almost a fortnight ago, and in addition to that, he wanted to inquire of what plans his master had for her, how long he could keep his captive until she would have to be relinquished.  Kenji had to admit that compared with his past ones, this was truly the most interesting assignment ever given to him, and almost felt a bit regretful that the girl would eventually leave his company via the wishes of higher figures of authority.  The ZLF had been rather discreet in their activities as of late, with exceptions to a couple of necessary tasks, so the ninja figured that they were formulating a plan on the inside to combat the resistance group, and he would be informed when his assistance was needed.

          When he reached the door of the building, the seventeen-year-old was quickly granted entrance upon recognition; such a young yet powerful figure in their ranks deserved immediate attention and compliance, to which he accepted with responsibility.  He stepped over the threshold into somber quiescent, and passed through the dim hallways hastily, not wanting to make his master wait any longer for their arranged meeting to ensue, although truthfully, the dark-haired ninja had arrived quite early.  Part of respect was punctuality, after all, and even though earlier he admitted being imperfect to his captive back at the cabin in the woods, Kenji still consciously strove toward that goal, as he wanted to give forth his best efforts when the situation deemed it, especially for his group and their cause.  Those he passed by stepped aside to allow him the right-away, and a few of the others even bowed their heads down in further consideration, yet another perk and reward of his dedication to the Liberation Front throughout their existence for the past couple of years.

          Indifferent to their behavior, Kenji merely nodded a greeting and continued toward his destination in mind, bleak darkness enveloping his lean form and stripping him of identity as he headed deeper into a secure, privileged section of the hideout.  Access was granted only to the higher-ranking members or those that got permission, but of course, the ninja had no need for such acquiescence, so he merely fixated the guards standing by with a cool look and they immediately allowed him through the door.  A long flight of stairs met him to be descended upon, while weak lighting flickered about the area, but the considerably sinister setting was of little concern to the young successor as he walked down each step, his pace not a jog, though quickened enough to satisfy.  Soon enough, the room at the bottom came into view, just a tad brighter than the former surroundings to appease the sardonic, yet honestly intelligent scientist that inhabited the area, who also happened to be the second-in-command of the Zoanthrope Liberation Front.

Amidst his dark lair was a tall man with an odd shade of green hair, donning a white lab coat that suggested his occupation of being a scientist; his surroundings of gleaming metal tables and corresponding instrumental tools further contributed to the indication.  He rustled about his secure underground location, checking over his current experiments as he awaited the arrival of his fateful servant, silently thinking to himself that he wanted better specimens to work on, such as the young girl that was currently being watched over.  Unfortunately, due to the circumstances of her relationship to the leaders of the resistance group, the intelligent figure knew that he had to be patient a bit longer; it was not yet the right time to have her in his custody, but the wait would soon be over if what he planned succeeded.  Though estranged at times, Hajime Busuzima truly possessed a brilliant mind, and had it been concentrated for good, his ingenious traits would have received praise, but for now, he was positioned right beside a certain evil former dictator of a foreign country, well-known for his mustache…

It was but minutes later that the somber assassin seemed to step out from the shadows of the dim, murky room, his focused amber eyes trained ahead respectfully, and he stopped several feet away from the other bystander before speaking quietly to let his presence be known, "Master."

Unfazed, the older male continued working, not even turning around, as he knew full well that this was one of the nights the young ninja returned to the hideout for the purpose of reporting his progress on the girl; cackling a bit, he returned the greeting heartily, "My boy!  Welcome back; I was expecting you to show…  I hope all is well with our little… guest?"

Remaining stationed in his passive position, Kenji gave a slight nod, his gaze unwavering as he replied, "Indeed, master… I have carefully watched over the girl per your instructions.  She is sleeping at present."  He paused for a moment before continuing hesitantly, "You have yet to send for her…"

Unbothered by the tentative inquiry, Busuzima merely waved a hand into the air absentmindedly, motioning for the cobalt-haired teenager to follow him as he strolled down an area of darkness, all the while passing a line of empty human-sized test tubes.  "No, because I'm afraid it's not time yet, boy… that damned resistance group is still bringing so much trouble for us and hampering our glorious cause.  You've read the files on that young Nonomura girl by now, I assume?"

"Only a portion of it… I apologize, master, for allowing the task to slip from my mind… I must admit that my assignment has kept me quite occupied; I am aware that she is first priority."  If the healed, but still slightly visible scar on his face could be any indication, that was obviously the truth.

"What a surprise, Bakuryu!  You're usually right on top of things!"  Busuzima exclaimed in amazement, but he just chuckled a bit and continued walking, raising a hand to rub his chin as he spoke further, "Hmm, she's been giving you some trouble lately, you say?"

The young assassin walked alongside his master and idly swept his gaze over the containers that would soon house a few specimens when the right opportunity presented it; there was usually only a small group worked on at a time for the most accurate results.  "She has been… a bit feisty, yes, but fear not – this little girl is nothing that I am unable to handle."

"Ah, worry not, my boy.  I have confidence in you; you've never failed me before, after all!"  The scientist laughed aloud at the truthful statement, and there was slight fondness in his tone for his most loyal and dedicated servant; "Why, you're even making some of the other members jealous, ya know… the secondary one ranked right underneath you threatened to leave us if he didn't get your spotlight, uwehehe!"

"Oh, is that so?"  A scowl betrayed his features for a brief second at the mention, for he was fully aware of the aforementioned member's name and the validity of his threat, but Kenji quickly wiped the emotion away and instead smirked a tad, continuing to follow the man in charge.  "Well, if he truly has an issue with my position, then I invite him to engage me.  I will gladly show him why I am in my current position within the ZLF's ranks…"

Upon hearing that bold proclamation, Busuzima stopped momentarily and patted the confident youth on his shoulder with a pleased grin as he praised, "Very good, my boy!  Never step down to an unworthy subordinate!  Now, truth be told, his mouth is getting rather tiresome, and I've got some suspicions about where his loyalties lie… but then again, we all know what happens to traitors, don't we, Bakuryu?  Hehehehehe…"

His former expression transformed into a sly grin, and he nodded shamelessly, a rather feral glint in his eyes when the true impact of the silky implication reached his ears and the possibility of such a delicious opportunity could be given especially to him…  "Of course, master…  Merely speak the name of whatever foul creature that dares to take advantage of our generosity, and it shall be done."

"Ah, excellent, my boy… you're truly deserving of your rank."  He clapped the ninja on the back crisply in approval, and then resumed walking; now the duo was venturing around an area where several caged animals aligned the walls, small bodies unmoving while their eyes were dull and void of emotion.  "Now, back to business…  Has our young kitty friend spoken to you about her friends or family at all?"

His eyes remained boldly straight ahead, still in a respecting manner of his master despite the warm acknowledgements that he had just received; a subordinate such as himself was there to serve and obey directions, or listen when needed, after all.  "Only briefly… spouting the normal delirious declarations of how they would make me pay, but I paid no heed to her rambling nonsense."

"Of course, of course… that's to be expected, my boy," the scientist assured even as he tapped his chin in amusement at the resistance being shown by such a weak and dainty little female, but it really just made her potential even more appealing to his studies.  "A shame that you haven't read the files on the young Nonomura girl yet… I was wondering if you've somehow found out that her sister is among one of the leaders of that puny resistance group?"

Kenji quirked a brow, the only indication expressing his surprise with the new information, but he did find the connection quite intriguing and welcomed being acknowledged, though he had to admit quietly, "No, master… my apologies; I was unaware of that fact until just now…"

"Oh, but she is!"  He cackled in delight, ever-pleased that his servant was so honest with him.  "Yes, her sister is Alice Nonomura… you've seen her before, my boy. She's that rabbit nurse who's caused quite a bit of trouble to our great leader, Shenlong.  Hmm, and as I'm aware, she had something of a relationship with Yugo Ohgami… surely you remember our old little spats with that wolf-boy, right, Bakuryu?"

"......"  The sole survivor of that family line was silent for a few moments; the enlightenment of his past made the surname "Ohgami" rather significant to him, and he wondered if his master knew of his relation to the deceased man, but he would not voice such a question should it suggest suspicions.  "Of course I do, master…  But he is a figment the past, a mere memory now, and we must focus on the obstacle at present.  Would you have me chase the rabbit out of her hole?"

Busuzima nodded enthusiastically, an impish smirk curving his lips as he commended, "Ah, you've got a great idea there, my boy!  I agree, something along those lines must be done.  As a matter of fact, our little Miss Bunny Rabbit didn't seem too concerned about the little Nonomura girl's disappearance in the beginning, which is curious indeed… but she's been showing a few signs of agitation here and there in our latest encounters.  I believe she's getting nervous about her absence by now, so we have to move quickly, my boy, yes, we must…"

"Of course, master… I understand completely.  What would you like me to do in assistance?"

"To avoid unnecessary trouble, I think we'll have the rabbit nurse sent away before you bring the little kitty girl to me… as you know, that band of zoanthropes up in Osaka owe us a favor for our help in crushing their opposition, and now's a good time to collect our dues.  After she's left, then you can introduce her sister here to her new home, and finally rid yourself of that tiresome cat.  Ah, having allies all over the place is a good thing, wouldn't you agree, my boy?  Hahaha…!"

"Certainly so, master," the midnight-haired assassin nodded a tad in agreement, and then internally decided to voice a rightfully-curious question aloud, "Hmm… may I be so bold as to inquire why you hesitate to kill the rabbit woman?"

His grin turned sardonic at that moment, but appeared to be very satisfactory as the older man stopped and turned to the seventeen-year-old to clap a hand on his shoulder in a friendly gesture, apparently not displeased with the nature of what was asked.  "Ah, don't worry, Bakuryu, that's a very good question… you're ever the ingenious one, aren't you?  Uwehehehe!  Well now… the young Nonomura girl has been giving you a bit of trouble, don't you agree?"

The truth of that statement bothered him slightly, since the skilled killer hated showing any signs of such weakness to his master, but since he could not deny it, an honest reply came, even hesitant as it was, while his light-shaded eyes held a slightly curious glint, "To an extent, I will admit, yes…"

"So then, if she isn't cooperative enough to… assist us in our cause, I'm afraid we just might have to give her a little push in the right direction, eh?  Her sister is still of some use to us, my boy… for if our little guest tries to ruin the experimentation and is unwilling to negotiate, well… something unfortunate just might have to happen to her sister, if you catch my drift."

Kenji nodded understandingly, completely unfazed by what his master was suggesting; how truly ironic that this sister his captive had sung such high praises about, could be a potential hamper for her willingness to comply with the ZLF's wishes.  "I see… so the nurse shall act as an incentive for the Nonomura kitten to bend to our will…"

"Yes, Bakuryu!  You've got it!  Why, sometimes I think you're even smarter than me, hehehe…"  Busuzima gave his subordinate a gentle squeeze on the shoulder before he removed his arm and motioned for the ninja to cross over where a table and two chairs sat at the far end of the laboratory, and then gestured for him to take a seat.  "So, now, all business matters aside… tell me, my boy, are you enjoying the pussy…cat?"  His grin turned a bit lecherous as he chuckled at the underlying implication, knowing full well that the young man was fairly innocent in the world of perverted pleasures, and certainly would be oblivious to slang terms such as the one he just used.

The dark-haired youth descended upon one of the chairs, and fell silent for a moment when he heard his master chortling, wondering why such an action had ensued, and as expected, did not understand the underlining meaning to the statement.  "…The girl has not been totally unpleasant, master, but she is, as you said, just a mere pussycat."

Remaining upright, still in a standing position, he strolled around a bit while continuing to talk, "Come now, my boy… I know you didn't appreciate those strippers I had sent for your birthday a few months ago, but even you must admit that the young Nonomura girl isn't too hard on the eyes, eh?  Oh yes, so young and soft she is, and with that cute little face of hers too…  Uwehehehehe…"

Kenji fought the urge to squirm like a nervous little kid, though he did feel rather uncomfortable with the startlingly-accurate description; it was almost as though the scientist could pry into his mind and see the traitorous thoughts he had of giving her the opportunity to gain freedom and flee from his care…  "…Yes, she is a tad…attractive…I suppose."

 "Ah, there's no shame in feeling that way, my boy…!"  The scientist grinned lecherously, but he greatly approved of having been acknowledged that his servant did possess normal hormones of typical teenage boys his age – the young ninja acted a little too different from the other male members of their group at times…  "I know she looks innocent, but damn, she's quite capable of stirring things up a bit in the loins, hehehehehe!  Hmm, you do remember that I gave you the go-ahead to have your way with her as you pleased, don't you?  I'm curious: have you had to use any… unorthodox tactics to make her submit, Bakuryu?  That is, of course, assuming that she's already under your control… I mean, surely someone with your level of skill has that young girl obeying your every command by now, right…?"

His eyes narrowed a bit when he recalled the times that she had stood up to him and refused his orders, but a soothing effect came as well with the memories of how he had crushed her opposition by using methods of his forceful, dominant personality…  "I assure you, master, that she is submissive to my will when I demand it of her…"  He paused briefly and then decided to reveal, "She can be a little resistant at times, but as I had said before, she is nothing that I cannot handle."

"Hmm, not bad, my boy… haha, I knew you'd do well on this assignment," Busuzima glanced at the younger man and studied his expression curiously, wanting to see the reaction to his next spoken words, "Well, if she's boring you, then don't worry, for I'll see that this is over as soon as possible.  You'll be informed of her sister's departure whenever it happens, but you can count on it being sometime in the next week or two.  I'm sure that little kitty cat has crossed her boundaries before, and maybe even irritated you a couple times, but be patient and keep her in a decent condition, Bakuryu… just remember that it won't be long before she becomes our obedient servant and fight along our side…"

"Yes, master," he complied and nodded, trying to appear emotionless and in complete agreement with the plan stated, though he wondered how it would affect the deal that he and Uriko had agreed to just a week prior… well, the ninja did have some time to think of a solution.  "I shall bear that in mind, and continuing watching over the girl within my capable hands."

The estranged scientist stepped behind Kenji and clapped him on the back in approval, though a strange glint sparkled in his bleak pupils even as he did so, perhaps of surprise that the teenager had not responded differently as he was assuming or expecting.  "I have much faith in you, boy… keep making me proud.  Perhaps one day you might even take our glorious leader's place if something should ever happen to him, though of course, we wish him a long and productive existence…"

The forbidden subject made his eyes widen a bit; the young man felt thoroughly surprised that his master could be so bold to make such a proclamation, even though the idea of him taking on a role of great responsibility was admittedly flattering.  He answered carefully, involuntarily stammering slightly as he began to speak, "Th-thank you, master… I shall do all that is necessary for our cause, but I dare not speak of any ill fate befalling our great leader."

Busuzima raised an eyebrow at what was just said, taking the weak gratitude as a sign of rejection, and his tone turned malicious for a brief period; "Of course not, Bakuryu!  No one is cursing him!  But should unfortunate circumstances happen, you never know…" he spoke normally again after that, "We'll all do great things under his leadership… after we crush that annoying resistance group, we'll be able to secure our position over those pathetic humans."  An evil chuckle ensued before more words spilled forth, "Well now, the hour's getting pretty late… I'd like to get some rest and prepare for our upcoming plans.  And as for you, my boy, I have nothing for you tonight except to return to the cottage and continue baby-sitting the young Nonomura girl.  Judging by your behavior earlier, you must be pretty damn eager to get her out of your hair, no?  Hehehehehe…"

"I will obey and accomplish whatever it is that you command, master," the cobalt-haired ninja replied candidly as he slowly arose from his seat to face the other bystander, his body in a passive position to once again demonstrate respect to one that deserved it.  "Please, waste no energy worrying about my personal preferences on the cat… if it is necessary, I shall watch over her for as long as you need to acquire an inviolable situation."

"Good, good…" the man with the lime tresses nodded in-sync with his words, seeming appeased as he voiced, "Excellent, everything is going well, save for that damn resistance group…" – his eyes narrowed to express aggravation – "Oh, but they'll soon be disposed of, won't they, my boy?  Hahaha…!  Well then, since there's nothing else to talk about, you can go now, Bakuryu… I shall see you on your next date of report."

Kenji bowed his head to show compliance, and further indicated so with, "Thank you, master.  I shall indeed take my leave and bid you farewell until the next time I am bestowed the pleasure of your company…"  He pivoted in a half-circle to retreat from the dim lab, casting a sideways glance at his master out of the corner of his eye as he turned before starting toward the exit without looking back, for once leaving a meeting of theirs feeling bewildered with what was discussed.

Once left alone in the dark setting, the manipulative scientist cackled at the thought of his mindful servant, utterly amused at the innocence that had been displayed during their conversation, considering all the tasks he had spent his past few years completing.  Busuzima mused over the possible relationship that had formed between the ninja and his kitten pet, thinking it rather absurd that just a simple little girl like Uriko Nonomura could penetrate the careful and thorough brainwashing he gave to the young killer.  His hold over the boy had been quite strong since the beginning, and even withstood two encounters with the deceased Yugo Ohgami, but then again, anything was possible, so the chameleon zoanthrope would have to be a bit more careful in stringing his followers along.  Even though most of the other members in the Liberation Front recognized his position as the second-highest leader, several of them were shifting their allegiances securely with Shenlong, which he found a bit aggravating at times, for he was the one that founded the group, and demanded absolute loyalty.

Numerous plans germinating in mind, Busuzima proceeded to a different exit than the one that was taken when Kenji had departed, using a hidden route to reach his sleeping quarters, and before he concealed the secretive path behind him, the ingenious figure murmured softly with a mysterious glint in his eyes, "I hope you'll always be this obedient to me, Bakuryu…"


	28. When Sympathy Strikes

_Special thanks to Andrew Glasco for his ideas on this chapter (to which I apologize for the slightly longer length than usual), especially regarding all that stuff Kenji spewed during the sparring session; some of it even confused me at times._

**Chapter 28**

**When Sympathy Strikes**

Day had settled over the forest once again since the rise of the sun, and in the present afternoon, the midnight-haired ninja was walking through the woodsy area with a casual, yet strong step, his amber eyes set in stone, intent on his path forward.  He was seeking out his captive, and had no doubt that he would soon be upon her, as he felt far more familiar with the setting than any other, especially with a clumsy girl that barely explored around, even despite the futile wandering during her leisure time.  Kenji knew that there were only a few places that the young Kenpo learner would feel comfortable enough to train in, and thus was completely confident in his ability to locate her, though he wondered half-heartedly about her awareness in regards to his vast knowledge.  His purpose for finding Uriko was his desire to make good on his promise from three nights ago, and school the clumsy feline in the art of combat… personally; that is, if she recovered enough by now – he had been patient and gave her the last forty-eight hours to recover from their most recent encounter.

"Huff… puff…"  Breathing hard but in a healthy, intended rhythm, the girl in question in question kept her fast-paced jog; she was currently working on building her endurance, and at the beginning, she could not complete a mile without having to stop a little beforehand and walking the rest of the distance.  Now that she had been training quite diligently since the initiation of the devilish deal, the amateur fighter could finish two without stopping, and occasionally even managed three with a good night's rest, although admittedly, she still usually felt tired afterwards.  No doubt it would take Uriko much longer to reach the level of her captor, since he had more practice and exercise of his skills, but nevertheless, she was proud of her achievements, and post her release, whenever that happened, she would continue improving on her fighting.  Despite whatever protests her older sister might voice, the sixteen-year-old was determined to ask her Kenpo teacher to resume his lessons, so she could become stronger, and in the future, hopefully never succumb to someone of Kenji's stature.

That assuring thought in mind, the fatigued youth decided to take a short break from training when she spotted an open clearing not too far up ahead, and came to a full stop upon arriving there, then proceeded to wipe the sweat off her forehead while trying to settle her breathing down a bit.  After the young brunette recovered and straightened her stance, she glanced around casually, just wanting something to preoccupy herself with, and as she caught sight of nature's inhabitants scurrying about, she felt very peaceful.  Never mind the bitter reminder that she was trapped while they could run free; in fact, the sight that should have been forlorn only fueled her drive toward success, and building her abilities up to the point where she could actually defeat her skilled opponent.  Uriko sighed serenely, making a mental note to return to this setting before the day's end, but the tranquility was shattered when only a moment later, a familiar voice greeted her ears, and certainly not a very welcome one at the present moment…

"Hmm, it seems that your perseverance is finally somewhat commendable at the very least…"

Her head immediately jerked in the direction of the words that she took to be mocking, as they _had_ come from the arrogant jerk that loved to provoke her for his amusement… knowing this, her eyes searched the area, especially lingering around the trees in expectance of him being in an elevated position.  But even though she was suspicious of his actions, Uriko did grant him a reply, softly-spoken as she internally prepared herself for a sudden attack just to be safe; "Kenji… where the heck are you hiding this time…?"

The ninja released a low chuckle, finding her paranoid completely unnecessary, though nonetheless, he obliged to her implied request and left his inscrutable position, simply walking out from behind a thick tan trunk while eliciting silkily, "Hiding, you say?  Why, here I am, my dear kitten…"

When the auburn-haired girl spied her adversary strolling out casually into her view, she instinctively took a step back, submitting to her natural inner unease that surfaced every time he approached her; "Oh… gee, what a shock, you weren't playing games for once and jumping around the trees like a squirrel…"

"Hrmp, a squirrel I am not, that I will assure you," he snorted slightly, then stopped a considerable distance away upon noticing her discomfort, but he still eyed her form critically, in spite of her obvious resentment regarding that action, and folded his arms in response to her glare just then.  "How is your current condition, Uriko?"

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the question, and turned away so he could only see her side profile, answering in a disgusted tone of voice to indicate her dislike of the blatant way he was staring at her; "What's it to you?  Like you'd really care if there was something wrong with me…"

Though his expression appeared slightly exasperated at her sass, the young assassin patiently and simply questioned her once again, no pause to convey any care of what she had just said, "Have you fully recovered yet?"

The casual way he ignored her just annoyed Uriko even more; she hated his condescending attitude and how careless he acted toward her opinions, so she jerked her chin to the side in a haughty manner and retorted heatedly, "You have eyes!  Why don't you look for yourself?!  Hrmp!"

A small flame came to life in his eyes, but nevertheless, he managed to respond evenly, maintaining a tight rein over his growing irritation, his intent gaze never faltering from her form, "Yes, normally, I would take the initiation myself and use my own senses to figure out such a question… but I thought perhaps you would appreciate being allowed to give an answer for once, since you are the one who seems to be offended with the gesture of… 'staring.'  However, judging by your flamboyant behavior, I presume that you have attained your full health, so then… I do hope you will not be opposed to us initiating the second fight here and now, my dear cat."

She released a quiet groan under her breath at his wonderful timing; still, the Kenpo learner gripped a fist and raised it up to her chest protectively even as she eyed the ninja wearily, knowing perfectly well that their deal was in effect, and she had little other choice than to comply.  "If that's what you want, I can't say no, can I?"

"What I want matters little in this present instance, Uriko… I have offered you time to heal between each of our battles, so answer me, unless you wish to willingly dive into a situation that could overwhelm you due to whatever current ailments invisible to my eyes.  How well has your healing served you?"

"…Yeah, I'm feeling a lot better.  I've almost fully recovered… except for those ugly bruises you left on my arms that one night," the sixteen-year-old grudgingly admitted, flushing suddenly at the latter mention and glancing away to avoid his inquisitive gaze.

He easily detected her unease, but merely lowered his arms to their respective sides and spoke flatly to deny a single sliver of emotion toward the display of discomfort, "Very well.  Then you will be close to full strength for our promised sparring session."

"…Huh?"  Curiosity was evident in her eyes as the feline zoanthrope peered at her companion with a bit of a sideways tilt; she was admittedly surprised that he only wanted them to spar together rather than try to snag the one victory that would seal her fate…  "This… isn't our second match?"

"No," Kenji replied, shaking his head as he explained listlessly, sounding as though he was being objective, but she had her doubts, of course; "You have much progress to be made before our next match, so that is my only intention for the time being."

Her trust in him admittedly waned occasionally, but she decided to go along with his plans for the time being, until he did something that would make his credibility die completely, and with that, the brunette placed her hands on her hips while a wry grin graced her lips.  "Okay, if that's what you have planned… then what's today's lesson, Kenji-sensei?"

He smirked slightly at the somewhat mocking title, but made no comment on it and informed her, "It is simple: I will observe your movement and stance as you attack me, and counter if possible.  If your blows connect, then I will admit that you have nothing to learn in that particular technique.  However… if I am able to deliver a reprisal, that means you made a mistake, and I shall instruct you on how to correct it.  Practice is sufficient only to a certain extent, for learning through experience is undoubtedly one of the best methods out there, and this will allow you to do so while being taught to change your erroneous ways."

His temporary student blinked, a little dumbfounded, as she felt unsure of this new way of practicing her fighting skills, since her Kenpo master before had taught her very differently, and she was suddenly forced into adapting a thoroughly contrasting method.  "U-um, well… all right, I guess that works.  Huh, here goes nothing!"

With that exclamation, Uriko charged forward without warning and leapt into the air, quickly extending both legs to kick at her opponent, but the skilled fighter merely put on a purely defensive face and sidestepped to narrowly escape her attempt, then spoke immediately after his evasion, "Good, but your balance is still lacking."

"Wh-what's that supposed to mean?"  She stammered uncertainly, though indeed, her landing had been rather clumsily, and to make matters worse, though unfortunately she was unaware of the danger at present, her back currently faced Kenji, and if they were fighting, he would have had an easy, open shot at her vulnerable spine. 

He tensed his posture a bit more, anticipating her next attack immediately even as a patient explanation came, "It means exactly what I said.  Both your take off and landing positions are sloppy; they cost you valuable time between your attacks and increase how long you take to recover before you initiate your next strike.  Even the force of behind your blows could suffer in a way perhaps unnoticeable to your carelessness, but should your opponent have considerable perception, he will take advantage of the smallest opening you leave."

"…Whatever," she muttered, and inwardly, Uriko admitted to feeling a bit confused as to why he was making such a big fuss over her running kick, since she really saw nothing wrong with it herself, but nevertheless, she crouched to prepare for the attack she had in mind.

With silent grace, she immediately swung her arms around as her body turned quickly, her leg gliding over in-sync with the motion as she aimed to kick Kenji in his ankle, but unfortunately for her, he had easily read the move from her early movements and simply leapt back to avoid it.  His amber eyes shone with mild annoyance as he shot her a cool glance; "No… do not spew forth such a disrespectful answer, amateur.  If you are to train with me, you will take my advice to heart… or shall I prove to you what a mar on your technique your lack of balance is?"

The younger fighter straightened herself up from the failed attack, but her knees remained bent for balance, unconsciously submitting to his commands even as she fired indignantly, gritting her teeth in aggravation when he smirked, "Listen here, Kenji.  You may be my teacher 'cause you're helping me out with this stuff, but you're not my master and you can't order me around like that, got it?  Let me make my own darn mistakes!"

He just gave a nonchalant shrug, so in determination to prove her abilities worthy of his attention, she dropped suddenly and rolled over to the ninja, stopping right in front of him while she stuck out an arm to hit his shins, trying to trip her adversary.  The attack landed, but ironically, in a show of his own keen balance and awareness, the perceptive ninja slid with the momentum and caught himself in a handstand, then rolled through with it, rising briefly into the air before thrashing his legs back down towards her.  She squealed in surprise and raised her hands over to shield her susceptible head, hiding her neck from his line of target by way of scrunching her shoulders as she dropped again to lay flat on the ground, hoping the impact would not be too damaging.  The sole of his black tabi shoes landed upon the center of her back, and Kenji pushed his weight slightly forward so that a moment later, he was literally standing atop her, his balance startlingly steady as he elicited smoothly, "This is how your balance must be utilized before you can… but of course, my suggestions probably cannot beat that of what your master says, I suppose."

That being said, his advice proven correct, he casually stepped off of her body, and once back on the ground again, Uriko just nodded and rose a bit shakily, unwilling to admit that she had been truly a bit frightened about the ninja dealing her real harm.  When she noticed their close distance, the eager girl grabbed his closest arm and yanked it toward her own form, while her other hand clenched into a fist and she smacked Kenji on both sides of his face before releasing him and retreating a couple of steps.  As she watched him raise a hand to ruefully rub the soreness in his jaw, the Kenpo learner only felt relief that her grab still worked and sent her opponent a small smile of satisfaction, obviously pleased that she caught him off-guard for a rare instance.  Meanwhile, the ninja was a bit stunned by the sudden attack and emitted a low growl of annoyance, having to actually consciously remind himself not to retaliate as he spoke aloud, "Not bad…  Your speed certainly can bring about many advantages in battle; I willingly grant you praise for that attribute."

She crowed internally, but on the outside, a determined look crossed her expression as she suddenly rushed at the older teenager, jumping into the air to kick at him frantically, her feet switching off to deal multiple quick strikes.  Kenji believed that he was prepared, meaning to prove his point on balance further by defending her attack; however, he only expected a single kick, and his surprise was complete when multiple intentions came.  He defended the first blow, but his guard was a little shaken, and the second one caused him to stagger and falter slightly, while finally, the third and fourth – thankfully, the last hits - landed squarely upon his chest, causing him to stumble back with a small groan.  The girl landed with her hands meeting the ground, and she used the surface to push off forcefully, managing to end up on her feet with a soft sigh of relief, but when she glanced at her sparring partner to see his condition, a mischievous sparkle lit up in her eyes.  "Oh, gee, did I hurt ya?  Sorry about that…" a cute giggle followed the apology.

He finally allowed emotions to be displayed with a slight frown, feeling a bit angered that he had made no point in personalizing this particular encounter before that moment, but she opted to take it to that level with her taunting remark.  "Hardly, my precious little kitten…  You honestly flatter yourself, for truth be told, your blows are too feeble to affect me.  I also suggest that you conceal your eagerness, for the movements you plan to make are very easy to read when anxiety is present on your expression."

She scrunched up her face in concentration as she struggled to recall her old training, wanting to make the best use her former combos, and was distracted by those thoughts when she bent her knees a bit and lunged at the ninja with her fist outstretched.  Of course, his perception detected her motion very quickly, and he merely lurched his head aside of the blow and grabbed her arm, pulling her towards him as he turned, tossing her over his shoulder, making the girl fly with the motion of his throw.  She curled her body into a tight ball upon landing to prevent severe damage to her back, but the impact still knocked the wind out of her, and Kenji just stood silently and watched her as she shook her head to clear the daze away, taking a couple of minutes to recover.  Up on her feet once more, Uriko tried to make her expression as emotionless as possible, which was ironically impossible, since she usually wore her thoughts and feelings on her sleeve, and right now she displayed doubt and concern of her own abilities.

Even as apprehension was clearly evident in her dark twin orbs, in an effort to change the pace of their training, the brunette asked timidly, "U-um… when are you gonna teach me how to defend?  I really don't think you'll be this passive when we fight, Kenji…"

He eyed her carefully, a thoughtful expression on his face.  "Hmm… this is true.  Shall we switch roles, then?"

"Y-yeah, that's okay with me…" she murmured softly, and instantly raised both fists before her chest as another timid question came, "Since this isn't a real fight… y-you promised that you won't hurt me… right?"

Kenji merely nodded in silent confirmation, admittedly feeling rather smug at the uncertainty of her voice, but he did not allow it to show through, and so the younger fighter waved at him dismissively with her hand, impatience joining the nervousness in her eyes.  "Okay then, let's just get this over with…"

He shot her a cool glare at the none-too-polite words, and analyzed her movements rather critically before he dashed towards his opponent and as he neared her, twisted his body to the side and aimed for her head with a swift shuffle-kick.  Although she was unsure of his full attack, the female fighter had enough sense to move away as he neared her position, and still got hit by his flying foot however, but at least it landed on her shoulder instead of the original target that would bring surefire pain.  Her heart pounding from the close call, she quickly ducked down into a roll, somersaulting a good distance away from Kenji before she rose and took a defensive stance again, just to see him whirl around immediately, leaping after her with a furious airborne kick.  She screeched in surprise at his alarming recovery speed, and barely had time to purposely fall on her back, while her hands instinctively shooting out to grab his fleeting leg in hopes of causing a hard land on the ground, but the ninja ducked as he descended, and succeeding in scurrying away.

"Whew…" she breathed softly, visibly relieved at dodging his fierce blow as the girl eased her way around her adversary, stepping lightly so that many options were left to her disposal when his next attack came, and watched him as he stood slowly, fixating a perceptive eye on her.

"Decent… you really are improving."  He muttered grudging, but then started slowly stalking toward his opponent, meaning to unnerve her and throw off her defense, and his approach was a bit intimidating to Uriko, if the way she began to back up to match each one of his steps served as any indication.  A smirk creased his lips at her silent submission to his effective mind techniques, and then his pace increased, gradually working into a sprint as he darted at her with no sign of slowing down until they would finally meet on her side of the arena.  But just when it seemed he would run right into her, he vanished into thin air, and reappeared right behind her, instantly lurching a leg out to kick at the small of her back, and because he caught her with that blow, she fell forward, releasing a shrill cry of pain.  Thankfully, her hands had shot out, once again instinctively, to prevent her face from slamming into the ground, but her chest landed rather forcefully and winded her for a bit, to which the girl tried sucking in as much air as her tightened lungs allowed.

Standing over her, Kenji merely folded his arms loosely about his chest, glancing upon her more easily, and made no further move to attack, remembering that this was merely a sparring session as he chided, "You need to be mindful of all your surroundings, Uriko.  Attacks will not always come from the direction you anticipate."

"A-apparently not…" she grumbled a bit hoarsely as she slowly eased herself to a standing position and sent him a defiant glare with her eyes, "But really, you're the only one I know who has such a cheap tech like that smoke thing… it's too bad you can't use honest moves to win, Kenji."

He laughed freely, only finding amusement in her accusation; "Do not attack me with your childish, idealistic way of fighting.  My methods are effective, and if you lack the presence to counter, then that is your fault, not mine.  You should know by now that all is fair in a battle to the death, my naïve little kitten…"

She visibly bristled at his condescending address, but unsure of how to convince him to think otherwise about his conniving way of fighting, she instead attacked his latter statement, "S-stop calling me that!!  Either use my name, or don't talk to me at all!  Grrr… I won't let you disrespect me anymore…!"

His amber eyes glistened with a hint of mischief as his lips curled up into a smirk, rather enjoying this as a game rather than a serious conflict, and bid her onward with an inviting gesture of his index and middle fingers, simultaneously uttering provokingly, using her name as a bait laid out upon a string, "So, you want me to respect you?  All right then, come show me how you will earn it, Uriko…"

The irritated brunette shook her head, patience with him growing very thin as she succumbed to her pride and suddenly lunged at Kenji, her hands flying toward his chest as a distraction while one leg was poised to smash directly into his shin.  He snorted carelessly at what he believed to be her attack, feeling earnestly sickened at its sloppy execution, and so he simply barred his forearms to negate her momentum, also steadying his balance, but it came as a big surprise when the supposed strike was just a distraction, and her foot instead slammed onto his leg quite forcefully.  The ninja grit his teeth at the sudden jolt of pain, and forced himself to recover quickly as he leapt back a bit unsteadily with his uninjured leg, falling into a handspring that he used to flip around and place distance between the two fighters.  She allowed a small triumphant smile to grace her lips, unable to hide that she was pleased to land a hit on him, and as she raised both fists before her chest to signify an offensive pose, sassed tauntingly, "Hrmp, I told you I'm not weak…"

"One ineffective strike will not win a fight, my dear foolish girl… you really have much to learn."  Casting an intent gaze upon her once more, Kenji dashed at the younger youth and tossed a shuriken to either side of her, each embedding itself in a tree, successfully throwing her attention off when she whipped around to identify the whizzing noise.  Taking advantage of her costing distraction, he leapt up and lashed down at her head with a vicious axe kick, which caught her square on both cheeks and sent the girl sprawling back, stunned by the hard fall as her neck snapped dangerously, making her cry out in pain.  He, of course, landed gracefully, and slowly rose to the full height of his stance, casually folding his arms once more as he observed Uriko, taking note of the painstakingly slow way that she got up into a sitting position and reached a hand behind to rub her stiff muscles.  Tears stung her eyes as she pouted at the dark-haired assassin, a pout curling her lips from the sudden paralysis for the time being, and once he realized the seriousness of her condition, his posture relaxed and he walked over to her location.

"…I suppose that move was a bit much," he mumbled quietly, kneeling down near the injured youth, less than a foot away to keep a close eye on her.  "This will be all for today, then… for contact anyway, at the very least."

Annoyance was vividly clear on her expression, and Uriko removed the hand she had on the back of her neck, placing it on his chest to push him away as she stubbornly defied him in spite of the slight trembling of her lips, "H-hey, I'm not gonna be licked that easily!  Th-this is just a small bruise, that's all!  I-I'll be fine in a few minutes…!"

Both of his hands grasped onto her arm when she tried to force him back, knowing full well that she would fall over as well if he went, all the while assuring her with his words, speaking calmly and objectively, since he had nothing to gain from merely teaching her, "Courage and foolishness are two very different things, Uriko… it is truly unfortunate that you seem to confuse them.  Remember, this is only training, and that means the winner and loser do not matter, especially with the absence of an intention for victory.  Accept the severity of your disorientation, rest, and be prepared to redeem yourself during a later session."

"Smart-aleck…" she grumbled irritably as she tore her hands away from his grasp and rose unsteadily to her feet, springing up a little too fast, which quickly depleted her balance, and the dizzy girl whimpered, grabbing onto the first support she could find, which happened to be that of the ninja crouched nearby.  She unwillingly fell against him, her chest slung over his shoulder while her abdomen pressed against his face; a surprised grunt escaped his lips at this sudden development, and his stance faltered with the unexpected responsibility.  He rocked on his heels in a desperate attempt to remain stationary, but ultimately failed and fell backwards, his arms shooting behind him to prevent a hard landing, and unfortunately, as Uriko went along with the motion, she forcefully came into contact with her companion.  His knees had slammed into her stomach with his flailing descent, and this caused her to grimace openly in pain, discomfort clearly aligning her facial features as the weakened brunette laid still atop her captor, rasping out hoarsely, "U-ugh…!  Augh, darn it… I-I really didn't need this…!"

Upon realizing that his knees had slammed into her gut, he instantly reached up and grasped her shoulders, a twinge of regret shining in his light-shaded eyes as he expressed his concern of her condition, "Are you all right, Uriko?"

"N-no…" she confessed reluctantly with a slight shake of her head, a rare gleam of weakness briefly flickering over her face as she struggled to remove herself from the ninja, lifting her upper body into the air as she slowly slid off of him, grasping his thigh to use as support.

He actually helped her move away, acknowledging her current state of unease, but his hands remained upon her shoulders as his intense gaze stayed on her form; because he genuinely felt a bit worried about her, he had not yet realized this blatant show of weakness coming from him.

Just grateful to be sitting down again, she herself even failed to notice that Kenji had helped her, and mumbled with a pained expression on her face, "Oh, m-my neck really hurts…" she reached back once again to rub the tense muscle hesitantly, partially closing her eyes to save energy.

He frowned, regret plaguing his conscience rather plainly; he had hurt her without reason, and with the additional fact that his rather cynical edge was out of mind for the moment, he felt badly, and inquired of her softly, "Can you make it back to the cottage, or will that be troublesome to your condition?"

"Y-yeah, I'll be okay, but, um… just let me sit here and… and admire the view for a little bit," Uriko noised uncertainly, wincing even as she did something as simple as shifting her position to cross her legs Indian-style; the agonizing throbbing at the back of her head and stiffened, tense muscles made her feel very uncomfortable, but also caused the girl great agitation with her current weak state.

Kenji silently watched her squirm around for a few moments before he slowly crawled around behind her, and tentatively rested one of his hands upon the nape of her neck, firming his hold just slightly as he kneaded the skin softly beneath his strong fingers.

Naturally, the Kenpo student jolted in surprise at this comforting gesture, and lurched forward, immediately regretting that action as she cringed in discomfort, instead settling for turning her head back partway to glance at her companion out of the corner of her eye.  "O-oh, argh…  What… what're you doing…?"

"…I was merely trying to massage your neck and ease your ailments," he answered flatly, unable to conceal a hint of exasperation in his tone.  "Your muscles are stiff and causing you discomfort… is that not correct?"

She quirked a brow at the confusing behavior, but then slowly leaned back, her cheeks flushing a bit when she discovered that he was very closely behind, and the girl soon found herself resting against his chest, a good resting position; however, the lack of distance made her just a tad uncomfortable…  "W-well… that's obvious… but, what do you know about _easing_ pain…?"  The implication was, of course, that he only knew how to cause pain, and very little else.

"Killing is not the sole task on my agenda, my precious little kitten…" his voice hissed those words indignantly even despite the endearment, though his fingers moved over her skin gently, squeezing just hard enough to ease her tension, his coordination considerably comforting due to his diligent training and self-sustenance.  "I can confidently assure you that I am not completely ignorant when it comes to the different sides of pain."

_I guess as long as he doesn't hurt me… I-I can trust him… I hope.  _Assured by him for the time being, her expression immediately softened from the soothing rub while her eyes came to a full close, a serene smile forming over her lips as the girl ducked her head down a bit to grant him easier access to her neck, emitting a small noise of content, "…Mmm…"

Encouraged, Kenji moved his thumbs down to caress along the newly exposed area of her flesh, continuing to run his hands along her smooth skin, physically feeling each knot that agonized her tension, and internally regretting the harm he had caused her… perhaps even admitting to harboring a sliver of shame.  He gave her his word that he would not harm her in their sparring session, which he did by the axe-kick, and although kneeing her had happened accidentally, the responsibility was on his part as usual, and so he aimed to correct the error by easing her pain.  Uriko sighed in relief when the numbness slowly began to fade, and the stiffened muscles in her neck had loosened considerably with the release he gave her; the only discomfort that remained was the ache present in her stomach where she had accidentally been struck by him earlier.  After a few minutes of his effective massage, the girl eased herself forward and tentatively escaped his hand as she whispered her gratitude quietly, her back still facing him while a pale shade of pink tinted her cheeks, "U-um… th-thank you… for helping me."

He allowed his hands to drop to their respective sides, and just stared blankly at the curve of her back, uttering a reply of equal volume to her own, "Think nothing of it…  I hope you are well now."

There was blatant confusion on her face as she pondered the enigmatic assassin that he baffled her so much… gradually rising to a standing position, the still-injured girl clutched her abdomen with one hand, while the other one grabbed at her braid, playing with it aimlessly. "…Um, I'm going back to the cabin now, okay?"

The midnight-haired teenager offered her a simple nod as reply, and feeling uncomfortable with the silence, Uriko started walking away, still clutching the area of discomfort as she occasionally had to suppress the urge to vomit; apparently she was more bruised than either had thought.  Kenji sensed her unease, but quickly dismissed the thought, inwardly deciding not to dwell on the unfortunately topic any further, realizing how much it distraught her; he followed his captive from a considerable distance, wanting to ensure the safety of her returning journey.  She heard shuffling noises behind her, and felt a little uncomfortable knowing he was still present, but said nothing, thinking he would not bother listening to her if she told him to go away, so she willingly lost herself in contemplation.  A small frown marred her brows when she considered her own weaknesses, but upon recalling her reason to fight, she allowed the forlorn tears to drift down her cheek, gliding over her smooth skin as she whispered quietly, "U-ugh, I… I don't wanna think like that-!  I… have a battle to win, and I can't take anymore stalling…  Oh sis, I wanna go home so badly…"


	29. The Struggle Continues

_Thanks and kudos to Andrew Glasco for his assistance on this chapter; without him, Kenji wouldn't be so badass in battle._

**Chapter 29**

**The Struggle Continues**

Two days following their sparring session, the Kenpo student was lying outside on the soft grass, in an area right next to the large rock that usually served as her seat, while her eyes were lazily fixated upon the afternoon sun, twin lids partially closed from feeling at ease.  Resting on her stomach, she shifted just a little to comfortably lay her head against the junction between her joined arms, heaving a soft sigh as the action ensued, the air in her chest just a little tight from the position, but she could still breathe without trouble.  Tired of dressing in such bulk from wanting to be modest around Kenji since the night of their heated encounter, she presently donned a white gym-type outfit, with a sleeveless top that even bared her midriff, while the matching shorts were snugly tight around her rear.  The girl's hair was braided as usual, although this time, the long brown length had been wrapped up in a tight bun due to the warm summer weather; staying out there far outweighed her desire to be cooped up in the cabin, but she felt hot nevertheless, and thought of going to the lake sometime soon.

The young man that was presently far from her thoughts approached from behind after a short time, his light amber eyes trained forward intensely, evidence that his next purpose with his female captive was clear and cemented in mind.  He had given Uriko sufficient time to heal, taken her under his wing to be trained as a better fighter, responded to her clumsiness with considerable patience, and so now was more than appropriate for the second – and what he intended to be their final – battle to begin.  Not the least bit shy about his intentions, the concentrating ninja made no attempt to hide the sound of his footsteps, but rather made the noise quite deliberate, although as the teenage brunette came into closer view, he eyed her change in clothing with more than a casual interest… and subconsciously conjured up several memories of her, sexual in nature, of course.  She had been dressing rather modestly around him lately, ever since the night he felt her supple body squirming underneath him, so this came as a slight surprise, but upon recalling his cause for seeking her, Kenji forced the enticing thoughts away as quickly as they had presented themselves.

"Ho-hum…" the aforementioned girl mused quietly, growing a bit bored, and so she closed her eyes completely, rather oblivious to the quiet footfalls behind her as a small sigh of content was elicited just then from enjoying the warm afternoon.  She had ended her training for that day an hour earlier, and was now taking full advantage of the free hours, more than willing to have the sun warm her bared legs, the creamy smooth skin emitting a healthy glow, appearing unblemished and fairly absent of injuries.  Meanwhile, in the midst of her leisure, she failed to realize that Kenji had stopped a few feet behind her, his arms folded loosely about his chest, the well-defined pectoral muscles visible as usual, due to the tight material of his present yellow ninja gi.  His light-shaded eyes trailed up and down her body's length several times, freely and shamelessly interested in what was bared to his hungry gaze by the wishes of the owner… but finally, the young ninja cleared his throat to try and get her attention.

"Hmm…?"  Her eyes slowly slid open at the noise, but she remained in her comfortable position, and when her ears perked up to detect further noises and heard none come, the girl shrugged casually, murmuring softly, "Huh, guess I'm just hearing things…"  Relaxing her muscles, she reached one arm behind her back to brush away a leaf that had fallen on her leg and was tickling her sensitive skin, unintentionally hiking the bottom of her shirt up a bit in doing so with the innocent movement of her hand retracting.

Almost growing flustered with the unintentional provocative movements of her body, Kenji dropped his hands to his sides and spoke aloud, a hint of irritation in his voice as he wondered if she was truly so ignorant to not know of his presence, "Uriko, get up."

"Huh?"  She instantly became aware when the other bystander made himself to be obviously known, and her eyes sprung open while her head lifted to glance back in the direction of the speaker, quickly discovering that naturally, it was the young assassin nearby.  "…Oh, it's just you.  Need something?  I'm trying to relax here, ya know…"

"So I noticed… my awareness is quite keen, my dear cat, unlike that of other unfortunate amateurs," he muttered, his tone mildly annoyed, although he did feel a twinge of satisfaction when she shot him a glare, "But I am not here to exchange idle chatter.  Arise from your position."

She rolled her eyes in exasperation, but obliged to his command nonetheless, slowly ascending until she was fully standing before him, her hands placed upon her bare hips in a display of disapproval, and tilted her upper body toward him in a sassy, aggressive gesture.  Once up, the younger fighter fired at him, "Thanks for spoiling my free time…  Okay, I did as you asked.  Now, can you tell me what you're bothering me for, Kenji?"

His eyes remained trained hard upon her, there being another purpose to take careful note of each aspect of her form, aside from the slightly perverse reason of merely complying with his primitive desires of only wanting her in a sexual manner.  "From what I can see, you look well…  There is not a hint of lacerations on your skin, nor any undesired marks marring the surface of pristine porcelain.  Does your body reflect such a feeling of preservation?"

She blushed just slightly at his strangely flattering compliment, though when she spoke, her words were derived from sarcasm, "Huh, thanks a lot, 'cause I care so much about your opinion and all, you know.  …Well, about that, yeah, I'm doing all right, but I'm sure you don't need me to tell you that since you're staring so bloody hard…" she openly frowned at the controlled killer, then scowled lowly under her breath as she turned her face away to escape his hungry gaze.

"…Then I suggest you defend yourself, kitten."  He elicited quietly, a strange expression of unreadable emotion – or lack thereof – coming over his face even as the dark-haired ninja watched her intently and lowered his stance a bit, simultaneously raising both arms in a proper defense.

"…?"  Her head returned to its original position so she could glance at him curiously, slight apprehension lingering in her pupils as the young brunette bent her knees a little and also adapted a better-prepared pose, anticipating his response even before she inquired, "You wanna fight?  Right now?  Are you serious?"

Pleased with the mild shock she was currently portraying, Kenji freely grinned in response, an amused glimmer alighting within his amber eyes as he taunted her anxiety, "That is correct… now is the time for our second battle to begin, and at stake: your freedom.  If you truly wish to attain it, then I suggest you do not hold back the least bit, for should I win here, the possibility of a third fight is eliminated, and you will be mine… so bear that clearly in mind."

Her eyes narrowed in determination at his words, and then that fire flared up in her irises that he had admittedly come to admire after all the time that had passed.  "I won't forget that, Kenji, trust me… I hear what you're saying.  All right then, get ready 'cause here I come!"

She rushed forward without warning, making good use of her sheer agility, and managed to seize a secure hold of the ninja's arm, wrapping both of her hands around it firmly as she forcefully flipped him over, intending to have him fall to the ground on his back.  Kenji was a bit surprised by her speed, but also knew to expect it from their time spent together, and he regained his bearings in the midst of her attack, whipping his legs forward with the momentum of her throw, managing to land a bit unsteadily on his feet.  Not wasting a moment, he lashed behind him with an elbow meant to strike her in the face, and the intended girl quickly turned her head so that her cheek was hit rather than her nose getting bashed and causing more severe injury, but she still winced from the blow nonetheless.  The determined younger fighter quickly shot out a foot to kick fiercely at the insteps in the back of his legs, hoping to make her opponent fall, and she did succeed in getting her target, causing him to rapidly descend, but just as his body touched the ground, he rolled up on his neck and vaulted his lower half into the air with his hands, the sharp tips of his tabi aiming for her chin.

Uriko openly grimaced from the pain and registered that she had bit her lip by the blood that was suddenly tasted on her tongue, but she stubbornly reached out with her hands and grabbed his flailing legs, forcefully and effectively flipping the ninja over on his face.  She quickly raised a foot and brought it down fast, stomping him rather hard, partially on his back and mostly on his side, not wanting to deal harsh or fatal lacerations to his spine, though even that made audible groans of pain escape him, and he desperately rolled away.  His rapid reaction allowed Kenji the opportunity to roll back up to his knees, and then leap away from the Kenpo student, and all the while, his face was one of bewilderment and pain – his mind could hardly rationalize that he had actually been bested by her in the first exchange.  It was almost admirable that she had learned how to adapt so soon, and he would have taken pride in knowing he taught her if this were different circumstances, but of course, in this battle right now, the young assassin wanted, and concretely intended, to win.

An incredible surge of power soared through her veins from the fiery drive and determination to win, and so pumped up by it, the feline zoanthrope failed to notice the shocked look on the face of her opponent, for all that she could see in her eyes was an obstacle that stood in the way of her freedom.  Though Uriko was a compassionate girl and had a kind heart like her sister, she refused to weakly submit to the evil ploys being administered, so the younger fighter reluctantly willed herself to view the ninja as a mere wall blocking her way.  Duelers did better in battle if they were emotionless, but she actually had to try discarding all feelings – both positive and negative – toward Kenji, as she dropped to the ground and rolled over to where he stood before suddenly springing up with her fist outstretched to strike him.  Since she had foolishly given him ample time to anticipate the technique, he was easily able to dodge the attack, inwardly smirking at the poor execution, and then instantly countered by agilely stepping in and thrusting an elbow towards her exposed abdomen.

"Argh-!"  His strike winded her, and she gasped for air, trying to refocus hastily as she snatched his protruding elbow and pulled the ninja forward with blinding speed, her foot poised to kick him in his side, and when he fell that way, the blow landed, winning a grimace from the well-versed fighter.  However, he was not deterred upon realizing that her hold had trapped herself as much as it did him, felt certain he could better use the bind to his advantage, and so with this in mind, he simply lashed out with a devastating punch aimed at her head.  Unfortunately, because both of her hands were wrapped around his elbow, she could not deflect that hit, but once again turned her cheek, allowing that portion to receive the blunt of his attack, a fine bruise beginning to mar her delicate skin afterwards.  This caused the girl moaned slightly in pain as she released her hold on Kenji, and thrust him back away from her as she clutched her aching wound, shooting forth a mean glare that expressed disbelief in how carelessly he had just treated her person.

Seeing his opportunity, the cobalt-haired teenager did not relent, and closed the small distance between the two swiftly and leapt, twirling around with furious momentum behind his kick aimed at her head, but thankfully for Uriko, she had already anticipated a fierce reprisal since his initial movement.  She willingly dropped to the floor and somersaulted forward to put some distance between the young fighters, hastily rising when she had traveled a couple of yards and then whirled around to confront Kenji, a determined snarl dissolving upon her soft lips.  And yet, she somehow managed to muster up enough provocatively to crook her fingers at him in a silent taunt, a rather coy gesture as she invited him to attack her, and he smirked, muttering a response under his breath that she did not catch.  A second later, he hurriedly rushed toward her once again, but just as it seemed he might attack, the ninja leapt aside onto the trunk of a tree, and then bounded off at her with a fierce flying kick, noticeable great momentum behind his foot.

Surprised by the sudden change in direction, Uriko was not prepared enough to dodge the attack, but she still shot her arms up to bar them against her chest, a sturdy defense, although it did hurt her arms to receive such a harsh blow, even despite the balanced grounding.  She slid back and stumbled over her own two feet, falling to the ground on her rear, and quickly yanked her hands up to cover her face in anticipation of his next target, learning by now that he had unfortunately liked to strike her in that area quite a bit.  A smug partial grin on creasing his lips, Kenji leapt up just slightly and slammed the heel of his foot into her lower shin, but because she had scrunched her body up into a ball for better protection, he only caught the side of her leg, partially grazing her shin, but not enough to injure her as originally intended.  With a new tactic in mind, the Kenpo student rolled backwards and sprung up into a standing position, then turned around and ran straight at a tree, jumping onto a branch and climbing higher to disappear above, leaving rustling noises as the sole indication of her retreating presence.

Thoroughly amused at this unexpected twist, the seventeen-year-old fighter laughed freely, and then elicited silkily, "Hmm, just what are you playing at now, little girl?  Do recall that the previous time you attempted a similar tactic, you had to be rescued from the elevated position such as your current one… and unfortunately for you, I am unable to serve as your savior in this present instance, so you only have yourself to rely on."

Peering down at Kenji from her shrouded location, she gave him a mean scowl and picked up a branch, throwing it at the ground, hoping to distract the ninja so that she could launch a surprise attack, for if he looked, he would be facing the opposite direction and she could be behind him.  Although his head did jerk toward the noise, that only made him partially turn, therefore proving that the young assassin did indeed practice what he preached – truthfully though, he had internally come to the conclusion that the lone sound was a mere ruse.  She thought about tossing another one, but suddenly realized that if she made too much noise, he would eventually find out where she was; as if hearing her thoughts, he began to stroll around the area, his eyes visibly alert and his body on a hair-trigger reaction.  Since there was little else she could do, the girl decided to follow through with her intended attack regardless of his position, and swiftly fell down, stopping rather short because she had her legs wrapped firmly around the branch, and she hung upside down nearby the ninja, grinning widely as she shot a fist toward his face.

Having long ago anticipated an attack and prepared for it, Kenji was able to dodge the punch altogether, though the space between was narrow, but soon after that, he wasted no time in delivering a rapid reprisal that came in the form of a vicious forearm.  Luckily for her, his opponent had bent her elbow post the attack and retracting the length, and was able to barely deflect his blow, yet inside she felt rather indignant that he used evasion so well, wondering what she had in her capabilities to get him.  Gritting her teeth in determination, the dangling fighter released the hold that her legs had on the tree branch and intentionally fell on top of the ninja, one arm shooting out to wrench around his neck, grasping him in a chokehold.  Though she was not heavy enough to make him fall, the girl still wanted to keep him in her control as she trapped him by tightly encircling his waist and rode his back, while pressing the blade of her forearm firmly against his throat, "See…how…you…like…this…!"

"…!"  Caught off-guard by the unexpected twist, the dark-haired teenager shut his eyes against her choke, but faintly grinned when his mind had quickly germinated an idea, so he grabbed her legs in his arms to hold her in place, and turned his back to the nearby tree she was recently it.  Making sure she was unable to leave, he backed into the trunk with great force, sandwiching the slender girl in-between, which caused her to cry out, the noise cut short when the blow winded her a bit, but to his demise, her hold about his throat stayed.  Behind him, her eyes had instinctively shut at the pressure but she did not relent, and her other hand quickly came around to his cheek to sink the nails firmly into his skin, and then she scratched him relentlessly, raking several fine lines, almost strong enough to draw blood.  This time, Kenji openly released a loud groan of pain, inwardly cursing the young amateur for bringing him this form of agony, and stepped forward before slamming her back into the tree yet again, continuing to relentlessly thrash her against the hard bark.

Learning how to quickly adapt to new situations, Uriko tensed her muscles in anticipation of the repeated tactic, and when he stepped forward for the third time, she removed her legs from around his waist and shot them behind, intentionally slamming into the trunk.  She could bound off of it from the force she executed and sent both her and the ninja flying forward, falling to the ground, but he reacted instantaneously and shot his hands out to prevent a hard landing, then pushed up to try to roll onto his back, his breath starting to grow short.  The Kenpo student willingly rolled with him, for she knew that even if he had her crushed underneath his back, the weight of his lean body was still not heavy enough to suffocate her, and all the while doggedly maintained her grip against his throat.  An internal prayer came that he would either fall unconscious from her hold eventually, or at least soon become weakened enough for the girl to get him in another predicament, and hopefully use her other dormant techniques to ensnare the elusive victory.

Growing somewhat desperate to escape at all costs, Kenji thrashed his head back to slam into her face, hoping to disorient her long enough to escape, and she submitted, stunned as her nose was smashed and releasing a small cry, her hold faltering slightly.  That tiny opening was just enough for the ninja to take advantage of it, and he grabbed her arm, wrenching the length away from him with his vicious grip, then scrambled frantically to place distance between the two fighters quickly as he sucked in precious air, coughing a little.  Rolling to her knees, Uriko quickly jumped back on her feet, and scanned the other bystander with her curious dark eyes, unable to hide the small smile of triumph on her face at viewing his weakened state – it sure was nice not being on the receiving end of pain for once.  And although her cheek and back stung quite noticeably, while her nose felt badly bruised, but thankfully not broken, she managed to muster up enough cattiness to taunt him in a rare, uncharacteristic show of rudeness.  "Oh gee, you look like you're a little short of breath there, Kenji…"

The aforementioned figure emitted a throaty growl in response, struck with a sudden urge to brandish his claws and lash her smile right off of her face… but he inhaled slowly, and calmed himself down for the time being, though he did ruefully raise a hand to nurse his visible, colored wound.  Almost at the same time, Uriko also tenderly grazed the bruise on her cheek with her fingertips, and was instantly angered by the memory; she scowled viciously, losing her former playfulness, and then lunged at her opponent without warning.  Her fists flew rapidly as she dealt multiple blows, trying to work out a combo that her body remembered better than her own mind, but because he had not yet recovered, Kenji chose to vanish from sight in a shrill puff of smoke, and reappeared many yards behind her.  In his new position, he bent his knees slightly for balance, and proceeded to watch the Kenpo student carefully, his eyes narrowed from both agitation and concentration, meanwhile secretly brandishing a shuriken in one concealed hand, ready to use it if she again approached too quickly.

"That cheap little…!"  She growled aloud in annoyance, but she only shook her head briefly before whirling around in a fast circle, hoping to catch sight of her opponent somewhere, knowing that he would not travel too far away, and when she did, flames flared up in her eyes.  "Hey!  You coward, come back here!"  She ran toward him, stubbornly pursuing the ninja, unknowingly negating the shuriken since the distance made it difficult for her to realize its presence.

"Oh, a coward, am I…?"  Kenji muttered bitterly under his breath, ire becoming a keen display on his expression with his growing irritation, and a split second later, he flung the dangerous weapon towards her right thigh, sending his fire and energy into the small projectile.

His shuriken zipped through the air, and the vast speed made her unable to dodge it, but she tried to anyway, jumping up so that she was struck in her lower leg instead, and even that made her land clumsily as a slight whimper spilled forth from her lips.  Trying to seem undaunted, she hastily reached down to remove the pointed star, and held it in her hand with a death grip, her eyes narrowing quite dangerously for her character as she warned in a whispered tone, "I…I'll slash you again if I have to, Kenji…"

"Make such a foolish mistake like your previous instance, and I will flood your bloodstream with them."  There was no hint of a bluff in his voice, but he did glare very fiercely at the weapon that she had inherited from him, almost as if he was testing her courage to defy his word.

The auburn-haired youth hesitated momentarily from his threat, uneasy since she truly had no idea how many shurikens were on him presently, but she took an interested note in his passiveness, surprised by the rarity, coming to a realization that it was there for a good reason.  Perhaps Kenji's condition was still at a considerably weakened state, and if that happened to be the case, then she had to move quickly before he sought to recover… so bearing that in mind, she darted toward him and upon getting a little closer, shot the shuriken directly at his face.  He easily fell victim to this distraction and whipped his head to the side to evade the weapon, thus giving Uriko the opportunity to dash in and turn around to slam her back into the ninja, but in her haste, she had unfortunately not even noticed that her angle was incorrect.  His perception immediately noticing this, the older fighter merely sidestepped, feeling mildly irritated by the carelessness of her execution, so she only managed to graze him before hitting the floor forcefully, to which the assassin agilely fell with her, his knee aligned to slam into her gut upon landing.

"_Augh!!_"  Tears blurred her vision as the wind was immediately knocked out of her, leaving the girl coughing and simultaneously struggling to breathe; she grasped at her chest with her hand as if trying to grab the problem out of her lungs, but of course, that was impossible.  Her eyes immediately squeezed shut as her stomach lurched from the unwanted overbearing of pressure, and saliva quickly piled up in her throat with the desire to vomit, making the injured fighter turn her face to the side and spit out the fluid on the ground.  Meanwhile, Kenji was leaning over his captive, a frown of disapproval marring his expression as he glanced down upon her, feeling a twinge of sympathy for her vulnerability, but after recalling the reason of their fight, he relentlessly launched a punch at her face.  She elicited a loud shriek of pain upon being struck by the unexpected blow on her cheek, hitting the growing bruise, and the back of her head quickly kissed the earth, and evidence of her discomfort began to slide down her cheeks as wet drops, more from reflex rather than of will.

Whimpering weakly, the injured girl carefully rolled onto her side to escape whatever attack he had planned next, also wanting to stand as soon as possible, but she was only able to raise herself to her knees while continuing to desperately gasp for air.  "U-ugh…"

Unfortunately for her, he had already gotten back on his feet in that time, having recovered faster, and immediately closed the distance between the two entities before aiming a snap kick, the tip of his tabi hitting her directly underneath the chin. 

This caused her head to snap back from the blow, and she fell back down, but made sure to get up quicker this time, managing to sluggishly to rise to her feet, and she slowly edged away from Kenji as her tongue nursed the bitten lip, hating the taste of her own blood.  "Y-you…"

"You wish to insult me once again?  Save your breath… for I believe is it finally my turn to cough out the taunts now, little girl."  He rasped out maliciously, a vicious bite in his tone as he then rushed her and teleported behind the Kenpo learner just as he neared, and snaked his arms about her waist as he hefted her back, bridging his body back to slam her on the neck.

Too burdened by the agony, Uriko screamed her pain aloud, not even caring that she was spewing forth weakness; the muscles in her neck were greatly stinging, making tears run freely down her cheeks from enduring the torturous move that he had just executed on her.  The wounded girl slid back the ground and laid completely still, her muscles aching from his weight forcefully and insistently bearing down on her, but she did whimper slightly in fear while frantic thoughts soared through her mind, _NO! I'm gonna lose again!  Argh…  I-I can't!  Oh God, I can't lose this battle-!!  I…I won't let Kenji own me, or my life!_

The cobalt-haired ninja released his hold shortly after impact, and easily rose to his feet; sending the sixteen-year-old a cool glare, he stepped over to her crumpled form and disrespectfully kicked her square in the side… although even he could not ignore the pain and horror etched upon her attractive features.

"S-stop it…!"  She cried out meekly, unable to hide the plea in her voice, and grit her teeth tightly as she weakly rolled onto her good side, and gradually got on her feet, her stance obviously shaky and frail despite the hard determination still burning in her eyes.  The inner turmoil conflicted with the sliver of fear and defeat that lingered in her mahogany orbs, but nevertheless, the greatly injured Uriko bent her knees slightly, and tried to draw balance from the earth as she spat out his name disdainfully, "K-Kenji…" – pausing to inhale sharply, she finally yelled after an endless moment, "I-I… I'm not… I'm not… giving up… this time…  Do you hear me…?!  _I'm not_ _gonna let you win!_"


	30. End Round Two

_Major thanks to Andrew Glasco for his much-appreciated assistance on this chapter – all I did was mold his ideas into something long and boring and Kenji-esque, hehe.  By the way, this chapter is a little longer than usual, my apologies if you prefer the default length._

**Chapter 30**

**End Round Two**

The apparent victim stood silently and watched his unfortunate victim, his expression of utter seriousness; the young feline zoanthrope certainly showed an iron will… but he was Bakuryu, the merciless assassin that rose to his position from drive and determination to succeed.  He made the past few years of his life by crushing his intended targets in all aspects, whether it be a mental, physical, or emotional game, and he certainly did not doubt that he could stub the fire from her eyes out as a cigarette bud be extinguished beneath a boot.  Yes, he could easily make her submit, batter her spirit until she served him mindlessly… and yet, somewhere inside of himself, there lingered resistance, but when Kenji pondered over the puzzling trait, he was unable to grasp a reason of understanding.  Grudgingly but surely, the seventeen-year-old ninja would admit that Uriko conjured strange actions from him, although even with her little leeway, he had never hesitated in the heat of battle before when victory was so close that he could taste it upon simply inhaling the fear of his opponent.

On the ground, the younger fighter coughed hoarsely as she gradually edged back, wanting to put as much distance between her and the adversary as possible, and all the while dragged in huge breaths to ease the disturbance that her body currently felt.  Kenji studied her actions with crucial keenness, but made no move to stop her – while her fiery passion impressed him slightly, it could not be possible that her courage should be rewarded with any such leniency, and so he was baffled by his own hesitation, unsure of the cause.  Yet, even if he had been presented with the truth, he would have adamantly denied it, for deep down inside, the proclaimed 'merciless' assassin did not want to see the fervor die from her eyes, witness her falling victim to hopelessness, and trudging through her days as a mere unemotional mannequin.  He wanted Uriko to be his, that he felt certain of without a doubt in his mind, but it was her current self that he found appealing, and he recognized that taking away her hope might change her quite dramatically… although perhaps if granted the opportunity, she might somehow retain the glimmer in her eyes – or so he hoped, anyway.

Internally, the contemplative ninja uncharacteristically latched onto that tiny ray of optimism, but the surface of his mind worked fervently for a plausible façade, as there was no possible way for him to come up with an excuse close enough to his real reason that he wished to explain aloud.  Just as he was inwardly considering the different paths to walk down, Uriko looked up in that instant and caught his eyes, this time making him helpless to look away, for he found it almost amazing that in such a position of peril, she could still be this strong.  He stood there silently and watched the flames come to life in her dark irises, even diminutive as they were, as they flared out with each blink she allowed, and seemed to attempt pouncing at him so he could be scorned by their acidic touch.  However, his reaction was not a defensive one, and he quickly realized that in granting her the slightest chance, he could crush all of her hopes and desires in the most dramatic fashion; yes, that sounded plausible enough – if the girl managed to overcome his half-hearted efforts in this battle, then his victory later would be much more rewarding…

Noticing that her defiant glare had began to flicker with bewilderment, Kenji quickly forced a small smirk to rise upon his face as he elicited coolly, not wanting her to rise until the decision was cemented in his mind, "Yes, rest assured that I heard every word you spoke painstakingly, my precious little kitten…"

While the Kenpo student visibly tensed up from hearing his coy little nickname spoken in such a mocking manner, she had more concern about her injuries, and the time that passed while he was thinking greatly helped her, and slowly she began to have feeling return to her body as air flowed into her lungs with growing ease.  After a few minutes of struggling, she finally managed to stand upright, and her eyes maintained their fierce glow of determination even as her mind was plagued with confusion on the absence of him striking the final blow.  She was down for quite some time, and that certainly gave him long enough to launch an attack that would make her knees weaken and fully stumble her position of strength; yet, he did nothing of that sort to her, which of course direly baffled her.  Eyeing the distance between their forms, Uriko reassessed a defensive pose to ensure her safety just in case her captor took advantage of the momentary pause and suddenly sprang, but still, she could not help firing back sassily, "G-good to know that you're not deaf in addition to being stupid, Baky…"

"Tch… childish banter," the dark-haired ninja snorted, casting a dark glare, "Can your body cash the bold checks that your mouth is writing?  Beware of what bold, albeit _foolish_ impression you are giving forth… for I can easily detect the emptiness and lack of force behind your words, and your presumed courage is obviously transparent."

"Y-you… you jerk!!"  She cried out with a gasp at his scorn, the shock evident on her face, and she suddenly felt angry that he degraded her perseverance so haughtily; deep down inside, a small part of Uriko had thought he would feel pleased with her determination, but apparently she could never be his equal.  Trembling from the ire that shocked energy tingling into her nerves, the Kenpo student barely realized her own actions as her legs bent a bit before springing up, and her body was launched at the ninja, tackling him to the ground while her hands groped around until she found his neck.  The girl held her arm firmly and jabbed the point of her elbow directly against his throat, not even aware that she had just left the rest of herself easy to be attacked – if Kenji desired to, he could find a way to overtake her in this new position…  However, he was still feeling terribly discomforted from his already-injured neck, so he merely rolled along with the momentum of her unexpected attack, and used it along with a hard outward thrust of his lean limbs to toss her behind him.

Her mind quickly grasping for a way to recover, Uriko rolled upon hitting the ground, barely on it as she suddenly sprang up again to jump at a tree, making her feet bounce off of the trunk as she turned and flew back at Kenji, wanting to once again trap him until he succumbed to her this time.

Unfortunately for her, the perceptive fighter had already risen in the time it took her to execute the intended attack, and easily sidestepped her leap, even having enough leisure minutes to chide her condescendingly, "Come now, Uriko.  Your poor tactics might work on another fellow amateur as yourself, but when you are facing a higher-leveled, more experienced fighter, being a one-trick pony will not get you very far."

"Y-you stubborn boy-!!"   His words were making her furious, and all the more determined to defeat him; with an uncharacteristically feral snarl, she cleared all thoughts from her mind, and allowed her body to become flooded with the memory of her old fighting techniques.  The vibrant girl dashed forward and struck at Kenji furiously, her fists flying with the need to feel muscles sinking under her knuckles, delivering multiple punches in a combination attack that her Kenpo master had taught her long ago.  Keeping in mind that he actually wanted her to win this bout, the ninja had to fight his natural reaction to defend the blows, and actually allowed each and every hit to land, so naturally, he soon became very dazed when she neared the last of her technique.  She ended the long string of attacks by leaping slightly and extending her long leg, her foot aimed concretely to smash into his chin with forceful, borderline violent intent; this final kick caused his stable footing to leave the ground, and he was sent crashing on his back a few moments later with a groan as one hand weakly rose to cup his jaw.

Huffing and panting from the efforts of completing her dormant combo, the sixteen-year-old remained standing strong with her chest visibly rising and falling with the heavy breaths, keeping a careful eye on her opponent despite his downed position.  Inwardly, she was honestly surprised at herself for remembering how to execute the attack, and even more shocked that Kenji had not blocked; while the various target of her blows made the technique a bit deceptive, surely he could have parried at least a few of the hits.  She wondered what sort of game he was playing at this time, for it seemed as if he actually _wanted_ her to win… although that had to be an impossible and undoubtedly insane concept, since he repeatedly expressed the great desire to own and dominate her.  The younger fighter just felt more confused as she kept pondering over the puzzling enigma that was the antagonist, and so she shook her head and tried to concentrate on the situation at hand, noticing that the silent assassin had already sat up on his rear end.

Grounding her stance firmly, Uriko decided to make the first move and slowly edged toward the ninja, fire still alit in her eyes as she assured him insistently, unable to rid her voice of the slight tremor, "I-I've got a lot more where that came from, Kenji!  J-just try to hit me again and I'll g-gladly show you!"

He forced another small grin on his face, internally feeling ashamed in knowing that he was pretty much forfeiting the fight to her, and found it rather difficult to maintain his confident demeanor as he slowly stood to his feet, and re-firmed his stance before rushing forward.  Upon reaching the appropriate distance, Kenji tossed an exaggerated, easily-readable punch towards her, to which she easily dodged to the side, and raised her hands up to immediately grab his arm, then bent and succeeded in flipping him over her shoulder.  He did not fight against her throw this time, and landed solidly on his back with a pained grimace, discomfort evident in his expression as his dazed amber eyes glanced at his captive, and he had to consciously discard the second thoughts and doubts surfacing in his mind just then.  Quickly taking advantage of the situation, Uriko immediately jumped on him, twin knees slamming into his chest as she clutched his arms again, spreading them next to his sides, and pushing him down as she used her legs to hold him in place.  "Grrrr… y-you're not getting away this time, d-darn it!"

Facing the aftermath of her abrupt, painful descent, he turned his head to the side and coughed up a few blotches of blood, the noise sounding as strained as his breathing became, and then he averted his attention back to her, staying oddly silent in regards to the situation, not even conveying his anger.  Blinded by her fury, she took his gesture as a show of defiance, even with the mere glance of his eyes, and she raised a fist up above her head, intending to have it strike down at his cheek with blinding speed and mark a welting bruise upon him, just like the one that he had given her earlier…  But when she saw the acceptance and passiveness in his character, the adrenaline seeped out of her body and Uriko suddenly regained her conscious senses, the will to conquer leaving her as she blinked dazedly, barely feeling in control of her own actions.  Consumed by a blood-lusting desire and executing brutal attacks with mindless abandon… she was becoming just like Kenji, and the thought sent bitter fear coursing through her veins; the Kenpo learner hesitated and lowered her arm, peering down at the older fighter with fear in her eyes as she uttered quietly, "N-no, I won't… I won't become like you…  K-Kenji…  I really don't want to h-hurt you… b-but unless you give up, I-I have to…"

He managed a small grin in response, his pride a glutton for punishment as he challenged her, "Go ahead and do your worst, kitten…  Recall that I once informed you how little your feeble blows affect me…"

"Y-you might say that, but I-I know that I can, and I'll have to hurt you.  I mean… I-I'm fighting for my life here, so I-I have to do this…  B-but, Kenji…?  Please don't hate me when this is over."  She pleaded even as her eyes narrowed slightly at his resistance, and then she raised both hands above her head; Uriko turned her face away as the joined union came speeding down, and smashed right against his forehead in a sickeningly fierce blow.

Kenji lurched back against the ground hard from the force of her powerful strike, and light flashed over his vision as pained groans unconsciously spilled from his lips while his eyes took on a glazed look, becoming blank and even more absent of any emotion.  The back of his head bled a bit now, the jagged ground being the perpetrator of the wound rather than his opponent, and he acknowledged the seriousness of his injury, but said nothing, finding it a strain to just breathe correctly with his current condition.  Meanwhile, Uriko had her face turned away so that he could not witness her crying, supple smooth cheeks glistening wet as she wrestled with her conscience and inwardly hoped that her sister and friends would never know how many times she had come close to killing someone.  Even with the unfortunate circumstances, she did not have the heart or courage to end the life of another person, and so the inwardly-torn girl whispered hoarsely, "P-please, Kenji, give up already…  I-if I kill you, I-I wouldn't be able to l-live with myself…"

His light-shaded eyes focused on her as he considered her words, wondering how it was possible that she could still show mercy on the brink of victory… but when his neck craned back, feeling heavy, his pride seemed rather shallow next to the pain that swam about inside his head.  He uttered weakly, speaking the words that she had wanted to hear ever since her defeat in their previous battle, "You win, Uriko…"

She slowly turned back to face him upon hearing his voice of defeat, quite disbelieving that he had actually admitted she beat him, and gasped softly while her eyes still shone with glistening tears, although she was honestly crying for him more than herself.  The girl hated having to hurt someone so severely, and despite the fact that Kenji was the one who put her in that predicament in the first place, her heart still ached for him, this poor confused young man that had thrown away so many of his years to live a horrible and lonely existence of uncertainty.  Uriko wanted this victory very much, no doubt about that, and felt a small smile creep up over her lips at the realization that she was halfway there on achieving her freedom, but she decided to keep her elation inside in respect for her fallen opponent.  Temporarily setting aside his condition, she had to instead concentrate on resisting her natural urge to leap around in joy, but the young brunette did bubble with renewed energy, and hope came to life in her mind, feeding her desire to be free.

It was hard not to react, though, for she had practiced excruciatingly for the past week to take on the short-notice task of defeating the skilled assassin at his wicked game of testing her lower-leveled abilities to see if she could possibly best him.  The blood and sweat and effort that the Kenpo student had put in turning herself into a stronger fighter was, of course, mainly due to the fact she wanted to beat him in battle, but also largely affected by the way he constantly looked down upon her in mockery.  She briefly reflected on the countless times that Kenji had degraded her determination, brushed off her courage as if it meant nothing, but now, he would have to admit that she improved greatly, and he was not so much higher and better than her as he initially thought.  A wide grin openly overtook her lips in that instance and Uriko squealed softly, covering her mouth to muffle the noise as her body trembled in excitement; this win for her in their second fight brought her closer to getting her freedom back, and after one more victory, she would see the outside world again!

Oblivious to her happy thoughts, the ninja raised his hands to cup his head, and gritted his teeth hard against the flood of sensations that suddenly returned to him with a new wave of pain, a bitter reminder of his willingness to succumb to such a meek amateur.  Her joy died down when she glanced at her opponent and witnessed his efforts of concealing discomfort, and she instantly remembered how badly he had been injured, jumping off of his body with a small squeak of resignation before kneeling next to him soon after.  She grasped a hold of his arm and assisted him into a sitting position, which he did not resist, although he noted with curiosity that tears had began to slowly streak down her cheeks, and he wondered what she could have possibly felt distraught over when she just attained a victory.  Studying his battered form, Uriko bit her lip slightly as guilt slammed into her at the reminder that it was she who caused him to be this disheveled and weak, such a sharp contrast to his usual confident stance, and she inquired softly, "Gee… you're not gonna die on me or anything, right, Kenji…?"

He muttered almost angrily despite the fact that he himself had really spelled his own defeat, "You do not have to worry about me, Uriko…  I will live…"

"You… you'll be all right then?  Whew, th-that's good…"  When a sudden impulse snaked into her mind, she lurched forward and wrapped her arms securely around his neck, pulling the ninja toward her in a tight, relieved, just-escaped-death type of embrace, uttering softly into his ear, "I-I… I'm glad y-you're okay…"

"Wh…what?"  Kenji was understandably astonished at her compassion, and instantly felt that her mercy truly needed to be a cause for concern, for if she showed any sympathy to the wrong opponent, it would be taken advantage of, and she could easily receive betrayal as reward.  The hug she enveloped him into was not unwelcome, but his growing headache made it rather difficult for him to enjoy; unsure of how else to react, he merely sought to assure her, "Injuries… are a significant part of battle…  There is no reason… to get so emotional… over a few lacerations, kitten…"

Her body froze as the girl hesitated visibly, and then slowly retracted, staring into his eyes intensely with her dark orbs of uncertainty, trying to probe his thoughts and understand his bizarre viewpoint, deeming it impossible that he could brush off his wounds so easily.  "Y-you… you actually don't mind being hurt…?  You aren't concerned at all about your own body and how much pain you're in right now…?  G-geez, I can't believe it…"

Her companion glanced up at her silently, pain the only readable emotion in his expression and upon his face as a whole – he conveyed nothing to show that she was the victor by his own accord, but he did inform her quietly, "I have been through many situations… where I had higher risks and worse consequences to endure…  Pain is… my punishment for being careless… and issuing poor judgment in battle…  I… I am not perfect, after all…"

She looked off to the side and admitted a bit reluctantly, her voice lowered in shame, "B-but… I don't think you made any mistakes…  I-I mean…I know I did, and lots of them, but… no, you're not perfect, but you're still pretty good, Kenji…  I… I'm kinda surprised that I actually won…"

The ninja quirked an eyebrow at her in curiosity, a little amazed that she would actually confess she thought he excelled her, but he continued studying her and said nothing in response, not wanting to elaborate on his loss, since it was his choice by will, and thus his own doing.

"Y-you know what… this might sound weird to you, but I don't feel really happy about winning…" Uriko voiced softly, a sad smile tugging at her lips as she slowly stroked her fingers through the dark blue bangs hanging just above his eyes, careful not to touch his injured head.

Rather surprised by that admittance, he waited until she looked directly at him and captured her eyes with his own.  "You feel no elation or sense of accomplishment in what you achieved today?  …Why is that?  Do you not trust that I will let you go?"  That was the first plausible reason that came to his mind, since he could not fathom a more sensible one.

A frown creased her brows at the mention; "I'm not even thinking about that right now, Kenji, sheesh!  It's just that I… I feel bad for hurting you.  See, that's why I can't understand why you wanna be what you are…  I can't ever kill someone and still live with myself… hurting people makes me feel really sad and guilty…  I mean, I'll fight really hard for my friends and family, but I'll probably end up feeling bad about it later if I seriously injured someone along the way…"  Since the subject was rather closely related to an event that occurred three years ago, unbidden came the memory of her beloved mother, and the young brunette had to consciously fight back tears that threatened to overwhelm her from the nagging reminder of the deceased.

"What you speak of… is a mere personal preference," the seventeen-year-old replied, "You obviously dislike the life I accepted, but… I truly feel fulfillment in completing my tasks… and furthering our kind towards justice… so this is why I have no remorse or regret for all that I endure… as long as we prevail in the end.  I find our present stance in society to be absolutely appalling… we should not have any reason to hide that a different blood… unique from that of normal human vitality… is what courses through our veins, separating us into an elevated, privileged level.  Uriko… you neglect what you are, deny the very genes that made you this person today, and I must admit that I truly despise that particular aspect…"

"......" she turned away in silent admission, not wanting to voice the truth aloud that she did indeed hide her abilities from her human friends; he sure knew which buttons of hers to push, though.  "…Kenji, why don't you morph right now?  You can heal yourself a lot faster that way…"

Kenji kept his eyes trained on her form, his gaze hardening as he wondered if she was trying to trick him into letting her see his beast form, but he only murmured softly, "…I dislike revealing my counterpart form when it may be used for surprise later.  And aside from that… I lack the energy to exert such excruciating usage of effort."

"Fine, fine, I was just trying to help, that's all…" the brunette elicited with an almost impatient sigh, and then removed herself from his limp body as she crouched on her knees and lifted his arm, draping the length over her shoulders in steady support.  "C'mon, let's go back to the cottage so you can rest and get better the normal way…"

With her help, he stood up on his feet, and as they began walking, he tried to keep as much weight off her as he could manage; after the duo left their former battlegrounds and started on a path that would eventually lead back to the cabin, he muttered almost inaudibly, "Because you are under no obligation to assist me…  I thank you, Uriko…"

Uriko blushed a little, appearing sheepish as she continued helping her companion along, soon speaking quietly, "Y-you don't have to thank me for anything…  I should be helping you anyway, after… after what I did…  I mean, I hurt you pretty badly, and I feel awful about it, so I gotta make sure you're okay… and help you 'cause you need it…"

The dark-haired ninja was displeased at being labeled as an invalid, but he fell silent, not wanting to provoke a verbal fight with her considering their current situation, although inside his mind, he thought it rather amazing that she had the heart to help an enemy.  He wondered what sort of figure could possibly influence his captive so powerfully that she would turn a blind eye to their current situation, and actually offer compassion and assistance to a man who had given her the complete opposite treatment.  Her generosity disturbed Kenji slightly… but he did his best to brush off the unwanted feeling and maintained an emotionless expression, not wanting to outwardly hint any of the thoughts that had just soared through his head, knowing for sure that it would be a sign of weakness in her favor.  The two teenagers walked for some time in utter tranquility, surrounded only by noises of the forest's evening critters, and when Uriko glanced around at the direction of the cottage, she caught a glimpse of it, and relief visibly appeared in her eyes as she sighed.

After reaching the desired destination, the auburn-haired youth opened the door and slowly walked her injured companion over to the cot, sitting him down carefully upon arrival, and stood right beside him as he gradually descended to the mattress.  He raised one hand to cup the back of his head with a pained grimace as the agonizing ache continued to throb on relentlessly, and he briefly wondered if he made the right decision in letting her batter him around as he ground out in a low growl, "Damn this incapacitation…"

She left him for a short period to close the door, and when she returned to him, she climbed atop the bed and gingerly sat next to Kenji, her smile weak as she glanced at him sympathetically, understanding his need to spit out the vile affects of defeat.  "Shhhh… go to sleep, Kenji… you really need your rest…  And… you're sure that you're gonna be okay, right…?  I'm a little worried about you…"

"I will be fine, I assure you…" he muttered, but then leaned his head up a bit and brought his hand back around to his face, finding a bit of blood resting on his palm and fingers, "…Apparently, my head is still bleeding from the blow delivered earlier, so I need to take care of this issue first.  Would you… mind checking if there are any bandages left in the cabinet under the sink in the lavatory?"

Her eyes widened in shock at the new knowledge, and she immediately leapt onto her feet, scrambling into the bathroom and ducking her head as she searched for the roll of gauze in the aforementioned area; locating it, she returned to the cot and shoved the wrapped strips into the older youth's hands.  "Here…  O-oh my gosh… I can't believe you were bleeding all this time and you didn't even say anything about it until now, Kenji-!!"

Prioritizing his condition over the desire to answer her, Kenji sat up with supreme effort, and slowly began to wrap the loose material around his head, his muscles tense from the effort, making the girl sitting next to him wince at witnessing the results of her handiwork.

Despite her earlier moment of euphoria at winning, right now she felt guilt consuming her emotions from watching such a powerful young fighter be reduced to his current state of near helplessness, and she moaned softly, regretting that she had hurt him so badly.  Turning to face him, she gently laid her hand on his arm just then, feeling him flinch slightly at the unexpected contact, and apologized softly, "K-Kenji… I'm s-sorry…"

Slowly, the ninja turned to glance at her, and assured her with utmost sincerity in his eyes, "Save your breath; you truly have nothing to apologize for, Uriko.  You did what you needed to achieve victory.  I harbor no resentment toward you for what occurred in our battle, and these injuries are not permanent, so rest assured that I will recover with the adequate amount of rest.  Your sympathy is… somewhat comforting, but unnecessary."  After voicing his thoughts, he resumed wrapping the gauze firmly about his head, covering the wound, and when he finished the task, set the roll down on the floor beside the cot for easy access, presuming reasonably that he would be using it several more times in the next couple of days.

Uriko nodded a bit uncertainly at his words, and noted with mild amusement that most of his midnight blue hair was now covered by the gauze; to distract herself from brooding too much over her guilt, she glanced out a window, and noticed that it had grown considerably dark.  "Do you want something to eat before you go to sleep?"

"…No, that is all right.  I would honestly prefer to just sleep right now above everything else," the seventeen-year-old informed her wearily, but made sure that his tone did not betray the slightest hint of aggravation to keep her assured of his content toward her treatment.

"Okay… heck, I don't either, so let's just go to sleep.  We can take care of stuff in the morning."  Both still clothed in their battle attire, she gently persuaded him to lie down, and then did so herself, taking his arm in the process and raising it so that she could get closer to him; the young brunette carefully slung her hand over his chest, and hugged him along the other side while her head was snugly fit right beside him.  "Good night, Kenji… sleep well…"

"......"  Kenji glanced at the girl uncertainly, and watched her for a few minutes before he looked up towards the tan wooden ceiling and closed his eyes, feeling very perturbed about the events that had just unfolded, but he still uttered softly before he was lost in slumber, "…Good night, Uriko…"


	31. A Little Closer

_As always, much thanks to Andrew Glasco for his ideas on this chapter. Also, I made this longer as an apology for making you readers wait so long._

**Chapter 31**

**A Little Closer**

"Ahhh…" the sixteen-year-old girl sighed heavily as she stretched her arms over her head while releasing that noise of relaxation, and then proceeded to rub her hair dry with her towel, as she had just finished her bath and was on her way back to the cottage. Her other supplies currently on hand included the bottle of combined shampoo and conditioner, a bundle of dirty clothes tucked underneath her arm, having already dressed in a new casual outfit after cleansing herself, and of course, her bar of soap used to rid of dirt. As she walked along, the brunette wondered what her 'roommate' was currently up to; the young man in question had been sleeping when she last saw him earlier that afternoon, and she hoped that he recovered a little since their encounter the day before. A slight frown marred her brows at the thought, especially when she recalled how carefully he had trudged around that morning, openly showing the severity of his condition, and Uriko tried to discard the guilt when she reached the door of the cabin, and pulled it open to walk inside.

Awake and albeit groggy, Kenji was lying down on the cot within the cabin, appearing a bit groggy, but his eyes still shone with his usual light of awareness, and as his keen perception served him, his head had already turned toward the door even before the knob turned. He commented nonchalantly just as the girl stepped foot over the threshold, "You have returned…"

She was a tad startled from the sudden verbal statement, but sympathy instantly flooded her facial features when she identified the speaker, and returned his somewhat odd greeting with a small, shy smile as she walked over to her duffel bag. After the young brunette replaced her belongings, she turned to her companion and walked over, sitting down on the bed beside him while uttering softly in reply, "Hey, you're awake… How're you doing, Kenji?"

At her show of concern, he glanced off to the side, still feeling somewhat ashamed in her need to inquire of his condition, for one way or another, he had fallen at this young girl's feet, and despite it being his decision, his pride still suffered quite a blow. Although he would grudgingly admit that had he fought her with his all and lost, that scenario was far worse than his current situation… shaking away the disturbing thought and trying to discard the mere possibility that she could overcome him, the ninja assured her quietly, "I feel all right… I will be back on my feet soon enough."

Uriko visibly paled at the admission, though her cheeks flushed a little from embarrassment at the knowledge that she had caused him to be in such a state, and she looked down at her lap while simultaneously twirling a lock of hair around her finger, her personal gesture of timidity. "Gosh… even after a day of rest, your body's still too… um, injured, to walk…?"

Mild irritation flickered in his eyes at her implied weakness of him, but Kenji only answered coolly, sounding as if his incapacitated state was not a personal issue, and just a list he happened to be reading off, "My balance is a little off, a slight headache comes and goes at its own leisure, and I am still a bit disoriented. I can stand and walk, if necessary – such as getting up to use the lavatory – but it is not very efficient or up to its usual par, obviously."

The auburn-haired youth nodded, unsure of what to say – she felt a tad afraid that if she expressed regret for her actions, he would become annoyed at the reminder of his lacerations, so bringing up bad memories was definitely not an option. Her eyes grew soft as she giggled and took on a lighter topic, "You were sleeping for a while, weren't ya? Did you know that you snore, Kenji…? Teehee…"

Quirking a brow in reaction to the knowledge, he looked back to her with a rather comical disbelief, never even considering that possibility, but realizing that he felt almost embarrassed, being someone who prided himself on being so silent in many aspects. "…You heard me snoring while I slept?"

A playful smile creased her lips as Uriko patted him gently on the shoulder, taking his astonished look well in stride, thinking it rather amazing that he was not as familiar with his own attributes as she had come to naturally assume. "Yup! Not that loudly, but you definitely do! I heard it when I was awake earlier," she briefly pointed at her own ears to indicate the proof, then moved on with the conversation, "So… is that all you've been doing today? Just sleeping?"

"Well… more so resting, really. I woke up quite sometime ago, and have walked around a bit in here… but as you can see, my current condition makes it a tad difficult for me to wander about outside and perform strenuous tasks."

"Oh… I see. Yeah, I know what you mean," she nodded with a small, sad smile, but she did ruffle his hair affectionately, allowing the dark blue strands to slip through her fingers while changing the subject to instead inform him, "I just got done taking a bath a few minutes ago, so I feel all nice and refreshed for tonight… Hey, um, speaking of that… how're you gonna take one?"

The thought had occurred to him earlier, but it was not his top priority… then again, if she brought the subject up, he might as well consider the possibilities; "Perhaps tonight I will feel well enough to bathe; my ails are just taking a little while to heal. I am sure it is not a problem as long as I use only however much time necessary to complete my task."

She shrugged half-heartedly in agreement, then glanced outside and acknowledged the growing dusk, so she noised in concern, "If you really want to take one, I think you'd better go soon… It's getting kinda dark…"

"…Is it so late already?" At her words, he glanced toward the window and gazed through the glass surface to the outside world beyond, instantly realizing the validity of her claim, slightly annoyed that his attempt in regaining his former stature of strength had been such a distraction. Kenji sat up slowly, murmuring his decision to the girl beside him during the motion, "Hrmp… I suppose my resting period took quite a bit of time… I certainly slept much longer than originally intended. Well, then… seeing as the weather will soon turn too cold for a later venture, I shall leave now to cleanse myself."

His companion eyed him critically, a partial frown marring her delicate brows as she voiced her thoughts aloud with a crinkle of her nose, "I think you're gonna take a while in your current condition, Kenji… If you're really not up to going outside right now, maybe you should just go to sleep the way you are now… stinky."

"Hah… I am sure that you would appreciate sleeping next to someone who is emitting the stench of blood and sweat mingled together. There is no need to worry about me, Uriko… such a small task as this is not so arduous that I cannot manage." As he assured her so, the ninja returned her gaze with a wry gleam in his dark irises and a half-grin touching his lips, showing that surprisingly enough, he was only amused by the latter part of her statement, and then he tossed his feet over the side of the bed and gradually arose, ensuring a secure footing. His vision whirled just a bit, but otherwise, his body was functioning relatively normally, and although not up to his usual standards, inwardly he felt somewhat relieved; the natural healing of his zoanthrope abilities always seemed to serve him best when presented with a dire situation. Briefly, he sent Uriko what could only be called a smirk, and then the seventeen-year-old crossed the room over to the dresser to retrieve the needed supplies for bathing, and under the watchful eye of his captive, headed for the exit, leaving the cottage.

"Sigh… that stubborn boy… he's never gonna learn." She breathed softly after his departure, and despite his momentary show of usual arrogance, a faint smile tugged at her lips even as the young brunette shook her head slightly, silently admiring the charisma and determination that was just displayed. Though those traits were misdirected most of the time, she had to admit that his strength in character impressed her on more than one occasion, and if he was a member of her sister and friends' resistance group, what a pillar of unyielding vigor he would be. But now that she thought about the respective members, the one good aspect that had come from Yugo's death was that he would never know of his younger brother's current position, siding with the very enemy that he fought against, and lost his life to. Again, Uriko wondered what had happened to turn the formerly shy and introverted, albeit decent Kenji into the frightening figure that he was today; if his will today was so strong, then how could it be thinkable that he would bend and submit to the orders of a mere estranged scientist?

Well, he definitely was not that sturdy as of late, and when she recalled his laggard pace of getting around, she grew a bit apprehensive and quickly hopped up from the bed, dashing in the same direction of his earlier departure with the intention to follow him, wanting to ensure his safety at the lake. After all, he had…fallen in…a previous time and almost choked to death that one night; should anything happen to him due to his current condition, such as him suddenly falling unconscious from the strained effort and drowning… the sympathetic girl would feel horribly responsible. Not wanting to condemn him with bad karma, she hastily discarded the negative thoughts and ran out the door, slamming it behind her as she stepped into the outer world of wilderness, immediately looking around while the darkness of night cloaked over, surrounding her slender form. Using her memory, she located the path that led to the designated bathing area and proceeded down it, and upon spotting Kenji up ahead after a few minutes, the auburn-haired youth called to him with only a twinge of hesitation in her step, "Kenji… wait for me!"

The young man in question paused his step, and turned his head to glance over his shoulder at the call, his eyes full of inquiry as he prompted, "…What is it? Did you leave one of your belongings at the cleansing site?"

Using his momentary hesitation, Uriko caught up to his current position, and bound right beside him, shrugging aimlessly to his question, a slight blush pinking her cheeks as she looked down before answering, "I'm coming with ya. Just, um, just in case a rock falls out of the sky and conks you on the head or whatever…"

He immediately quirked a brow at that strange statement and regarded the girl with exceptional disbelief in his expression. "…You believe that out of nowhere, a meteor will just suddenly fall from space this very night and conveniently crack my skull open? Is this sort of strange humor what you and your friends exchange on a normal basis…?"

The slightly-embarrassed female youth rolled her eyes even as she giggled at how peculiar her excuse had indeed sounded, but then covered up her discomfort by taking a hold of his arm and gently tugging him in the direction of the lake. "Y-you never know what can happen, right? Um, anyway, c'mon, let's go already; the sun's gonna be up for morning at the speed we're going!"

"…Right." Flickers of confusion alit his eyes, but nevertheless, Kenji followed the persistent girl, moving at a noticeably slower pace than normal, but otherwise there lacked any other indication that he felt differently; instead, he wondered inwardly why she had pursued him.

Though Uriko was patiently walking at his speed, she eventually grew a little bored and began to turn cartwheels upon the grass, sprinting up to lose the excess energy she had gotten from being refreshed in the lake, proving that despite all events, she still obtained her usual playful jubilance. "Whee!"

While her overly happy demeanor and ridiculous show of enthusiasm mildly annoyed the ninja, he inwardly noted that his current feelings were no comparison to the amount of aggravation that plagued his senses when he had first met his captive. He willingly recalled how much he had wanted to choke the abundant life from the formerly-infuriating teenager, resenting the very light of joy in her eyes, thinking she was mocking him with her way of life, trying to raise the value of her existence over his own. But now, her behavior really seemed nothing more than a bit out of place for the quiet young fighter, though he simply chalked it up to being used to her company… and yet, somewhere deep down inside, beyond the surface of his mind, he enjoyed seeing her so freely jovial. A brief recollection made him realize that he rarely saw her completely revealing emotions without a sliver of timidity due to his presence, and Kenji also noticed that she had been more open toward him ever since the end of their second battle – perhaps she saw him differently somehow?

"Hrmp…" A bit more dignified than his younger companion, the complacent seventeen-year-old merely closed his eyes and rubbed his temples a bit as she dashed on ahead, silently grateful that she was not there to witness his body's brief betrayal of weakness. His head still pounded quite badly, but he only had time to heal it, seeing as there were no other options for him to take, and therefore he was helpless to be patient and wait for recovery to come – he certainly would not seek help from his group for fear of what they would find out. To distract himself from the discouraging thoughts, Kenji raised his eyes forward, and after a few moments, he arrived at the lake to meet the girl under his watch… who at this point, with how she had been acting as of late, was hardly a captive anymore. At the current moment, he spied her knee-high in the water and trailing around the cool vicinity, flinging the liquid up into the air, while her shoes and socks were strewn about in the grass on dry land behind her, leading him to believe that she had tossed them aside with careless, childish eagerness beforehand.

He soon arrived at the destined setting, glancing at Uriko somewhat unsurely for a bit, wondering if she realized that he had to strip in order to bathe, but when she failed to turn and acknowledge his presence, he merely shrugged and began to unwind his scarf. Still avidly concentrating on playing around, the young brunette was oblivious to his presence as she continuously bent down and cupped her hands to carry water up, then throwing it up into the air, closing her eyes as she felt the wet drops sprinkling rain down. Releasing a small sigh of contentment, she repeated the action several times, not even caring that her shirt would eventually become soaked – that would dry over time, anyway, and all she wanted at that very moment was to feel pleasure and relaxation. After the grueling battle she had recently encountered with the ninja, the girl willingly allowed herself to be intoxicated with the notion of freedom, and since she won their second fight, it became a very reachable goal, and vibrant hope flared up heatedly within her…

Meanwhile, Kenji tossed his scarf over a nearby branch, and then unlatched the firm buckles holding his metallic leg guards, allowing them to slither soundlessly onto the ground, all the while keeping his amber eyes trained intently on his playful companion. The tabi he wore on his feet were easily taken care of, and right after that, the top of his gi was loosened before he slipped it off over his head, revealing his well-defined chest to the cool night air, making the ninja suppress the urge to shiver from the chill. It amazed him just slightly that throughout this entire time, Uriko remained blissfully unaware of his actions; he wondered with a partial smirk if she would notice should he stand right in front of her face wearing nothing but the flesh he was born with. At this thought, he chuckled lowly as he finally gripped the skin-tight material of his lower attire and tugged them down, revealing his lean legs, muscular with strength, and now he was standing in only a pair of briefs, the rest of his body bared for all to see.

When the cobalt-haired teenager grabbed his soap and stepped toward the water, slowly walking into it, the sounds of the shivering liquid finally alerted Uriko to his presence, and the said girl immediately turned around, her eyes widening in surprise at the amorous sight. For all the time she spent with him, Kenji was always considerably modest, and now she had just laid her eyes on his almost-nude form – if he did not don anything as lower attire, she would have seen _everything_, which sparked both nervousness and intrigue within her. Squealing softly at her provocative thinking, the embarrassed youth hastily bound out of the lake, one hand cupping the side of her face to allow him privacy, though her heart pounded fiercely at the memory of seeing his hard muscles naked in her view. Coughing bashfully, she made sure her back was turned as she ascended to dry land, quickly climbing her favorite large rock and sitting atop it while shrieking inwardly, _why the heck didn't Kenji tell me he was already here?! Sheesh! I wouldn't wanna naked in front of just anyone!!_

The young man in her same vicinity snickered at her modesty, finding it rather ridiculous with how he had ravished her only several nights before… but he dispelled those thoughts, however, knowing a rather embarrassing reaction could elicit below his waistline at such an erotic memory. Yet, he did watch her curiously, wanting the girl to meet his eyes before he started his bath, silently admitting to himself, _perhaps I made a…mistake…in pegging her as promiscuous; such a blatant display of innocence cannot possibly be a farce._

The silence stretched on a bit longer before Uriko finally uncovered her eyes, inquiring softly, "…are you in all the way yet?" before slowly looking up, and after seeing that he was in waist-deep, securing the private portions of his body safely from her line of sight, the girl giggled softly, feeling a little flustered for some odd reason. Although she had to admit he had a nice body, strong and muscular from his training and not looking too overly bulked like one of her friends, the lion zoanthrope Alan, she was embarrassed from being reminded of her heated embrace with Kenji at his partial nudity, and so she decided to voice her slight unease. "Geez, could ya please warn me before you do that next time…?!"

"I have nothing to hide, and I am not indecent," he disagreed, stretching his stiff muscles a bit before the latter part of her statement caught his attention, and the ninja glanced at Uriko with a wry grin as he provoked, "Oh, so you intend to watch me bathe again? Is that what you meant by 'next time,' Uriko…?"

"Wh-what?!" She squawked as her cheeks immediately blushed a dark shade of red, and she thrust her hands into her lap, beginning to wring them nervously as she continued to sputter the rest of her exclamation, "H-holy Mackerel, you'd better be kidding…!" _D-did he just make a joke? He… he wasn't being serious, right…?_

"There is no need to overreact and flare your temper at me… of course I was merely jesting, you silly girl," instead of that sounding like an insult, his tone was mild, leading the brunette to think that he said it as an endearment, which confused her a bit. Not offering further explanation, Kenji merely started scrubbing himself with the soap, silently lathering his arms; in an effort to relax the soreness of his body, his eyes easily drifted to a close as he bathed, and an uncharacteristically serene expression overtook his face.

"How the heck was I supposed to know…? You're always so serious…" Uriko mumbled under her breath, glancing half-heartedly to the side after heaving a sigh at the ninja's strange behavior; out loud, she told him, "Well then, go ahead and take your bath… I'll be here if you need me for anything."

Her gaze averted over to him just in time to catch a slight nod as her reply.

The quiet girl observed her surroundings to pass the time, and soon spied a few pebbles lying near her feet; remembering how he had teased her not long ago, a mischievous grin formed over her lips, and she picked them up. Positioning one between her fingers while palming the others for later use, she skipped it expertly across the surface of the shimmering water, and giggled when the tiny rock hit Kenji in the back, eliciting cutely, "Oops, my bad! Teehee…"

His assassin instincts were to whirl around and confront his enemy even at the slight assault, but he quickly calmed them down and merely opened his eyes, slowly turning to meet the gleeful dark eyes of his companion, annoyance clearly etched on his expression. Her laughter immediately died when she caught sight of his stony exterior, and she chewed on her bottom lip tentatively as the ninja responded to her non-attack, his tone icily cool, "I would prefer that this not take much longer than necessary…"

"Wh-what? It was just a tiny rock – not like it's gonna hurt you!" Uriko giggled again, using it to cover up her nervousness toward him, but when he continued to glare at her silently, the girl ceased the joyous sound and hung her head, slowly dropping the remaining pebbles into the water as she decided to watch the ripples instead.

"......" Satisfied with her obedience, he turned away and continued to bathe, retaining his usual stoic demeanor, but a slight twinge of guilt pricked at him when he recalled how she had bent her head down so pitifully, and he certainly had not missed the hint of fear in her eyes.

"Sigh…" The timid brunette finally glanced up after some time, studying her captor carefully as she contemplated the strange emotions stirring within her; although she had won their second battle, guilt overwhelmed her desire to jump up and down in excitement. She still felt bad for hurting the ninja so badly, even despite his efforts to assure her that he had no qualms about it, and speaking of which, the periodic acts of kindness that he occasionally expressed confused her, making Uriko wonder if he was truly the monster she perceived him to be at the beginning. Shifting her position to hug her knees up to her chest and rest her chin atop the junction, the sixteen-year-old watched Kenji silently, but with a touch of innocent curiosity – she had never seen a fully naked man before, not even with past boyfriends, due to her morals. The way he had kissed and touched her those nights ago had awakened new feelings inside her, foreign, frightening, yet very exciting, and no matter how hard she tried to understand them, she feared that the only way to truly attain the answer was to engage in more provocative encounters with him…

Aware of her attentive stare but ignorant of her thoughts, Kenji finished washing his frontal area before he bent over slightly and continued with the lower half of his body, the throbbing in his head seeming to be more and more noticeable as time wore on. He managed to cleanse the intended area without too much discomfort, but when he straightened back up, his focus wavered a bit, and he immediately fell still until he had recovered, all the while inwardly blamed himself for the added pain, knowing that dwelling on the issue only made it worse. Nonetheless, it was painful; his head apparently despised him being up and about, and the young man faintly regretted the decision to bathe, but he wanted to be clean after an uneventful day of lying in his own filth, so he had to endure the consequences. Unfortunately, when the ninja awkwardly tried to snake one arm around to scrub his back, he stumbled, and for the first time realized just how badly off his balance was, muttering a choice phrase under his breath in irritated response of his pathetic status as he carefully regained stable footing.

The girl in his same vicinity was a bit jostled at the sudden movement of Kenji righting himself, her ears perking up when detecting the noise, but because she had not been fully paying attention, his curse escaped her; still, her curiosity gained voice when she asked, "Um… did you just say something, Kenji?"

He paused for a moment, considering his next course of action; it was clear that he would not easily be able to bathe himself without taking quite a bit of time, and her earlier remark about requesting her help suddenly became very appealing. Moreover, he figured that if he asked for her assistance, there was a chance for a certain little… engagement, so to speak, with his ever-enticing captive, and the prospect of such a perk overrode the small bit of pride that begged against his current train of thought. To try and hush the inner protest, Kenji recalled that he had lost to her just the day before, anyhow, so it would take a while longer before he could full recover, and surely there was no harm in taking what she _willingly _offered… His expression enigmatic and undecipherable, he turned around until he faced the young brunette on dry land, and elicited smoothly, his voice cool and emotionless, "…I was contemplating whether or not I should ask you to help me wash my back. I… I seem to be having a bit of trouble performing the task by myself."

Uriko blinked in earnest surprise at the request, and after she had recovered, slowly began to stand up from her seat, a slight pink flush coloring her cheeks as she answered clumsily, "O-oh… u-um, sure, I can help you…! Th-that's no problem…"

He merely nodded in response, and silently waited; trying to conceal her timidity, the female youth curved down the path leading into the water, and she went in, apparently uncaring of how wet her clothes would get as she trailed over to her companion with gradual steps.

Her eyes conspicuously evaded his gaze, especially when she neared his position, while the steady apprehension inside her grew rapidly, making her heart flutter oddly at the sight of his lean body up so close and willingly exposed. Discomfort was clearly evident in her tone when she asked shyly, "Um… c-can I have the soap, p-please?"

Kenji was fully aware of her timidity, but did not comment on it, and merely eyed her meaningfully in silence for a moment before he wordlessly cupped her hand and placed the soap atop her palm, a mysterious glint coming to life in his light irises as he released his hold and turned his back to her.

Swallowing nervously, Uriko fought the urge to noise her nervousness, and focused on dipping the soap into the water and rubbing the slippery surface against her other hand, inwardly marveling on how warm the inanimate, small rectangular bar felt. With a start, she realized that of course, it had come from the ninja's body, having scoured his entire body just minutes beforehand, pressed against the same hard muscles she was admiring earlier… but at those very thoughts, the bashful girl frantically shook her head to shoo them out. She refocused on the current situation and raised a soapy hand to place it upon Kenji's back, proceeding to trail her fingers lightly over his skin, barely touching him, considering how she was hesitant about being so close to him in the first place. Still, it even amazed her how differently she saw him after having bested the skilled fighter in battle, and witnessing the side of him that bared raw need to her eyes; prior to his loss, he always seemed to be a figure of solid invincibility, but knowing that he _did_ in fact have weaknesses, and was therefore somewhat…normal…brought her considerable assurance.

Meanwhile, the young man on the receiving end of her attention allowed a small sigh to escape free as he felt her begin to scrub his back, for although he knew her touch was unsure and soft with timidity, he did not feel the least bit bothered, merely deeming her behavior rightfully submissive. In all honesty, having her willingly touch him, and in a non-aggressive manner, was almost intoxicating to him; before this point, he had been the one to initiate any and all contact between them, so this present situation felt rather special in some odd way. Her mouth and over-eager enthusiasm seemed to dominate all actions in Uriko, but there was a time and place for that kind of behavior, and he rather favored this rare side of her, quiet and blushing as she shyly tended to him. Said preference trickled toward enjoyment, but when his thoughts threatened to overwhelm with compassion and compliance toward his captive, Kenji allowed his eyes to drift to a close and instead concentrated on feeling rather than dwell on such deep contemplation.

Uriko felt a bit relieved when his muscles noticeably relaxed under her palm, for while his tension fueled her apprehension, his confidence gave her strength; feeling a little foolish for making a big deal out of nothing, the girl raised her other arm to aid in the cleansing. With it, she rubbed the soap into one side of his back while her bare hand was on the opposite end, both sliding over his bare flesh with her own soft fingers, nails lightly scratching him as she went about the task, the new motion innocent, but unintentionally provocative. Fighting to keep a tight reign on his emotions, Kenji had to purposefully stop a second sigh from escaping him, for he honestly could not ever remember receiving such tender treatment before, even with the past silly little twits vying for his attention in the ZLF. The soothing sensation of her smooth skin gliding over his back felt almost ticklish, and so his shoulders relaxed slightly, his tense posture easing to enjoy the session as an unfamiliar smile of earnest, unbridled delight danced upon his handsome features.

Further evidence of his approval made a small grin play about her lips; his reaction was so calm and natural, and with her fears put aside for the time being, Uriko transferred the soap to her other palm, continuing to use both surfaces in scrubbing his back. Her free hand gradually made its way down to his waist, and stopped a little above his rear to wash a clean line across from one side to the other, her only intention being to help him, although she could not help blushing at how close her fingers were to his posterior… A tingle jolted his nerves at the short distance, and Kenji allowed his head to lull to the side just a tad as he inhaled deeply, but refused to allow the instinctive sigh to escape, admitting only to himself how much he was enjoying her gentle touch. Despite his resistance, he knew full well that he was already giving off numerous indicators informing the slender brunette just how much he liked her treatment; still, being a man of mere flesh and bone, he could not help _briefly_ imagining that her touch might fall lower, and snake around to his front…

"Hmm…" her head tilted slightly to the side in curiosity when she took avid note of his actions, wishing she knew what he was thinking at that moment; Kenji certainly concealed himself from her very well, always keeping his captive guessing on his next actions. Concentrating on the present, Uriko began to rub into his back with circular motions, presuming that he would not mind if she applied a little more pressure, but in her clumsily fast motion, the soap slipped out of her hand and fell into the water, to which she frowned at her own foolishness. "Oh, darn it…"

He heard the splash that emitted from the lake when the bathing object was dropped into it, and a slight smirk crossed his lips at the hint of tentativeness in her voice, but he decided to feign ignorance and merely tipped his head back to cast a look over his shoulder. "Is something the matter?" The ninja inquired evenly, and before she could respond, he had already turned around to face her, an enigmatic spark in his light amber eyes as he took in the way the younger youth immediately took a small step back, while simultaneously avoiding his gaze.

"Um… I-I, um… dropped the soap in the water…" Knowing full well that he was watching her, and rather intently for some unknown reason, Uriko carefully focused her line of sight to peer down into the surface, turned murky by the growing darkness in the sky so that she could barely glimpse the pale-colored bar. "Uh… c-could you get it, please…? I, um, don't wanna get my shirt wet…"

"Well, certainly I can," Kenji replied without a hint of emotion betraying his tone, but then he paused and subtly moved a bit closer to the girl while his arms glided through the water, stealthily positioned near the sides of her waist as he finished his earlier statement, "…if you would do something for me…"


	32. Beginning To Trust

_A big hug to Andrew Glasco for his awesome patience and brilliant creativity, helping this chapter along with his ideas. This chapter, slightly longer than usual, is dedicated to all of my fans that waited three damn months for me to update – my apologies – but IndigoSiren in particular should like a certain scene in the latter half._

**Chapter 32**

**Beginning To Trust**

At the subliminal provocation, the younger youth blinked in slight bewilderment, truly and innocently confused by his statement, and because she felt a little uneasy with their lack of distance, she glided back through the water, her hands trembling a bit as she stammered a shaky reply, "Wh-what…? What do ya mean by that? I-I already helped you to wash your back… right?"

For some strange reason, the sight of her squirming intrigued him, and so the ninja advanced the necessary steps forward to place the two in the same close proximity as before, and assured her with a small smile, "Why do you seem so nervous? My request is very simple, I assure you…"

Uriko coughed a little, trying to conceal her timidity as she hesitantly raised her head to meet his eyes, and found herself unable to identify the fire that burned within them, but a lighthearted flutter tickled her stomach at the possibility of his need for her. "U-um, what… what is it? N-no promises, but I… I can try."

"There is no need for you to fear me, Uriko. Here, I shall show you the favor that I would like…" The hands he had lingering underwater suddenly closed in and clamped around her waist, just as Kenji leaned toward the girl, depleting the distance between their lips, but as aggressive as the action might have seemed, his kiss turned out to be… surprisingly gentle.

"Mmm-!" Though subconsciously expecting it, she was still a tad taken back by his boldness, and stunned for a minute, she allowed his hands to grasp a secure hold of her hips and keep her in that very spot, while the girl sank slightly deeper into his arms, her body's initial reaction to receiving such delicate pleasantry.

If he had not been concentrating on their embrace, the young assassin would have expressed some sort of satisfaction in her response, but for the time being, he merely allowed his hands to slide up along the sides of her back, his lean fingers spread comfortably upon her shirt. Uriko tensed up initially, but after a few minutes trickled by, her muscles slowly relaxed and her eyes closed when she realized that he was not exerting any forceful pressure on her; in fact, he seemed content just simply staying in the same position with their lips locked together. On a self-conscious level, she felt a bit odd about kissing Kenji on the day following the long and hard battle that the two had previously dueled, and yet to her surprise, a rather demanding part of her strongly craved such a display of gentleness from him. Although she was relieved to discover that the ninja did possess a more humane, considerate side than what he had showed her so far, their first intimate encounter still lingered in her mind and left the auburn-haired teenager feeling just a tad timid and weary.

His eyes slid to a close upon realizing her willing submission, and her own pair followed suit as he slowly tipped his head forward a bit to deepen the kiss, his lips lightly teasing his partner, using scant force to demonstrate his desire, which eased her doubts a bit. Thin, spidery strands of his midnight-blue bangs came flowing down to sweep over her skin, bringing about a ticklish feeling, but of course, she fought the urge to laugh, knowing full well that it was inappropriate for such an intense setting in the present. The auburn-haired youth sighed softly when one fugitive hand slid up and carefully cradled the back of her neck, and the force surrounding her form also lessened with such delicacy that led her to believe he cared about the treatment bestowed upon her. In a moment where the world revolved only around the two youths, Uriko found it difficult to recall the reason why she did not have an ounce of trust in Kenji; the way he was behaving as of late dispelled her former lingering doubt, and convinced her to have faith in him… just a little…

A slight shiver took hold of the ninja from the contrast in the warmth of her body compared to the light chill of the lake, and in an effort to ease the polarized temperatures, his hold tightened just slightly around her, a slight twinge of possession in his intentions. He dared to take their kiss a step further and parted his lips a tad to pressed the warmth of his tongue beyond, trying to gain entry into her mouth; after a split second of hesitation, Uriko gave her consent and was relieved with the leisure tenderness of his exploration. She almost crooned from the feeling of his heat transferred to her small frame and flared up a pleasant fire within, and even though his controlled, but undoubtedly rash breathing was domineering as it mingled with her small gasps, a sharp chill dove down her back. His bare chest pressed firmly against her amidst their embrace, and his muscled arms silently demanded her affection as the owner was thoroughly enjoying her taste, his tongue lightly grazing hers, unveiling a mere corner of his need for her through slow, gentle caresses.

"Mmm…" the soft moan escaped her lips from his gentle touch as her body shivered slightly with the delicious sensations that Kenji brought her; she honestly felt surprise toward his kindness capabilities, but it did mean that there was still a chance for him to change. Feeling his hold tighten around her form, she tentatively raised her hands to run her fingers lightly up and down his arms, and when her nails traced the bulge of his biceps, her breath caught at realizing such unyielding strength coming from the young man being so gentle to her. Truly, it was rather ironic that the two were embracing so tenderly now when just the day before, they had violently assaulted one another, but that thought quickly fleeted away from her mind when more pleasantries came to replace and occupy the space. Uriko curled up the corner of her mouth in a slight smile as much as she was able to while being kissed, and when she relaxed even further, that allowed her body to be filled with the beguiling illusion of being adored and cherished by a loving, affectionate boyfriend.

The young ninja finally broke away for breath when air became more elusive, though a sliver of reluctance lingered in his dark pupils as he inhaled deeply, drawing oxygen into his starved lungs, and also used the temporary break to cool down the fervor in his body. During this time, Uriko glanced at him full on the face and blinked a few times before she looked away, obviously faking a dry cough as she became victimized of the awkwardness hovering overhead, and doubt was rather evident on her expression. When he was back in full control of himself, Kenji allowed a partial smile to quirk up the corner of his mouth as he gently placed two fingers under her chin and slowly raised her up so that he could meet her eyes, the girl merely squeaking softly in response. And then the realization dawned on him that she needed reassurance on what they were sharing, wanted to make sure he had real feelings toward her, and was not using her for his own perverse amusement – well, he would play by her rules… for the time being.

Pink began to spread over her cheeks when the enigmatic older teenager continued gazing at her in silence, and once again, Uriko silently wished that she knew him well enough to guess his thoughts, but of course, he rarely expressed his inner self to her. Unfazed by the way she was staring at him so blatantly; Kenji merely looked back at her, all the while slowly exhaling his hot breath upon her lips as his eyes narrowed to thin slits that intently locked onto her dark orbs, recognizing the timidity, but evident desire in them. She still harbored fear toward him, but apparently she had become careless, or was unable to hide her attraction for him, and he wondered which one dominated her emotions as the hand he had on her chin started moving and drifted down to her neck, his lean digits trickling a ticklish path across her skin. His action caused the girl to giggle a bit, though she quickly cut it off, especially when the tip of his index finger stopped atop the small area where her heartbeat pulsed, and he felt the faint vibration grow stronger as he softly stroked her vulnerability with the pad of his thumb.

Her breath caught in her throat for a second, and when it passed, the enthralled brunette managed a short gasp, though that reaction soon ended just as Kenji bent his head slightly and his tongue came out to lick over her lips, the deliberate stroke slow and sensual. Uriko shivered from his heat, and she barely registered the soft purr that had started to elicit from deep within her throat as her eyes creaked open a crack, twin mahogany irises glowing with contentment even in the growing darkness of the oncoming night. Enticed by the unspoken invitation, the young man pressed in once more and brushed his lips almost teasingly across hers, but then slowly drifted aside, running along the smooth curve of her cheek, past her jawline and ending up at her neck, focused on a desired area. He felt her pulse again, this time closer and rather intimately, and he kissed the spot softly, trying to control the primitive instincts rising within him as he exhaled warmth upon her milky skin, to which the girl released a quiet mew of pleasure in response.

Her lips pouted slightly at being teased, but that soon turned into a smile of bliss at the feel of his heated breath upon her bared throat, and as he continued to stroke her sensitive skin with slow, wet licks of his tongue, she mewed softly, subconsciously sliding her arms up to wrap around his neck. This brought the ninja intimately closer to her body, an action that he took avid notice of, but Uriko was far less unaware, simply succumbing to an ache of unfamiliar need that threatened to overwhelm her should she resist, so she gradually gave into it. Heart beating rapidly with the sensations growing inside, she almost swayed in dreamy dizziness when Kenji nibbled her gently, while simultaneously beginning to drift his hands along the curve of her back, and then he paused briefly to pull back just slightly and glanced at her. Entranced dark brown eyes returned his gaze, though less intensely, as silence fell over the two for a short time before the girl reached her hand across to her partner and gently cupped his cheek with her smooth palm, a soft smile of earnest adoration on her face.

At the knowledge of her approval, the primitive, albeit natural urge to mate began pulsating within him, heatedly encouraging the young man to satisfy what his body desired by taking his captive right then and there, uncaring of the current circumstances and surroundings. Merely driven by lust, it was a powerful force that lingered on the boundary of being controlled, or overtaking him, but before he would dare succumb to such wild, animalistic pleasure, his growing sense of compassion wondered if she felt the same way, and so he sought to find out. Kenji said nothing to indicate the intentions being persuaded by active hormones, but he did tighten his hold a bit, drawing the girl very tightly against his lean form and allowing her to _feel _the evidence of his desire, and a soft gasp was her response. The hand she had resting upon his cheek quivered for a second as Uriko started lowering her head to look down into the water, but when she realized the blatancy, immediately elicited a small squeal of embarrassment and shrunk away from his embrace.

That gave him the answer he was seeking – despite her opinion of him being nothing more than a cruel, heartless creature with no morals whatsoever, there were boundaries that he would not cross, the most important one being his steadfast determination in keeping his word. He was attracted to his enticing young captive, and certainly had no qualms in satisfying his desires with her, but he would not take Uriko against her will, especially when she had just taken a step toward her freedom, so his honor won over his sexual drive. Closing his eyes, Kenji sharply inhaled a deep breath, mentally ordering his body to obey the owner's wish of calming down to a controllable level before he released his hold on the girl, and took a few steps back, glancing off to the side once he regained sight again. The surprised and bewildered brunette blinked at him several times, but then elicited a sigh of relief as she turned around and started trudging out of the lake, the wind briskly sweeping in to chill her dampened clothes mere seconds after her feet met dry land.

"I, um… I need to get back," Uriko uttered softly and rubbed her bare arms for emphasis as her gaze fell in the direction of the path that lead back to the cabin, her back conveniently facing the ninja so he could not see her expression. "I…I feel really cold out here. C-can you… finish by yourself?"

"Yes." Kenji replied coolly, although his tone was frigid from nonchalance rather than irritation at her retreat; he did, however, quirk an eyebrow slightly at her refusal to meet his eyes, but knew of her unease, so he chose not to comment on the rude action. "I will return later. …And thank you for the assistance."

"O-oh, you're… welcome," she started a bit at the admission of his gratitude, and a smile almost formed over her lips, but the cold wind sent a sharp chill coursing through her body just then, instantly snapping the girl back to reality, so she sobered up. "Um… see you tonight…"

"......" the young assassin offered no reply to her farewell, since he had already given one to her a few minutes prior, and he casually continued bathing himself even as the sound of her fading footsteps echoed in his ears, taunting him with her absence. Refusing to submit to such a worthless entity, he scoffed at the feebleminded notion and concentrated solely on cleansing himself, trying to speed it up due to the fact that his body had conveniently just began to ache with the reminder of his most recent battle. The sudden reaction was strange, considering its nonexistence when Uriko had been tending to him earlier, and the thought never occurred to him that her touch could have soothed his ails, for he certainly did not need her to help him recover, in addition to washing his back. Yet then again, even Kenji had to admit that it was a pleasant encounter, and if his control were not in danger of becoming shattered and risk the chance of possibly scaring or hurting the girl, he would have pursued the embrace until completion.

His body still vibrant with the sensual memory of her petite form pressed against him so tightly, the dark-haired ninja shut his eyes and chased the amorous thoughts away with a frown of determination, unwilling to be a victim of primitive desires.

-----

_Whap! Thump! Thud!_

Small beads of sweat slowly glided down her damp forehead, but the young woman paid no heed to the unavoidable and continued the task, her fist a mere blur as it sliced through the air and slammed straight into the sturdy side that held hard sand inside. Her movement was swift; her body in fine form as she spun around in a tight circle with her leg outstretched to deliver a fierce kick, and upon contact, the beanbag swayed a little ways from the force, while the attacker quickly settled back into her default battle pose. The expression on her face only revealed deep concentration, told nothing of the thoughts that were currently running through her mind, but the quiet observer behind her knew Jane well enough to tell that she was a bit distracted, not completely focused on the training at hand. But, no comments were made and he merely kept watching her, his dark eyes hazy with his own contemplation – though neither partner had voiced their concerns out loud, they were both dwelling on the same topic regarding mystifying, slightly disturbing knowledge.

Several days before, one of their fellow allies serving as an undercover informant had managed to come into contact with one of the resistance group members, and left a chilling message that told of the ZLF's plan in progress: "The definite way to seizing victory in a war was to rupture the heart, because then death would come swiftly and surely." While Jane scoffed at the stark blatancy, thinking the terrorist group was primitive to have come up with such a simple, therefore ineffective plan, Long pondered the metaphoric meaning behind the statement, recalling that Busuzima often liked to toy with people's minds. Alan led a meeting soon after the encounter, and advised all of the others to be cautious and keep a careful eye on their friends and family, then briefly glanced in the direction of his wife and his daughter, and both in turn raised a critical eyebrow at him. It was a bit ironic that he felt so concerned about them when he and Jenny would soon be departing for France; his condition had healed almost completely back to normal, but Alice thought that he should rest a while longer before taking on any recent tasks.

Presently, Jane was thinking over and revising her abrupt initial assumption of the message, and she _did_ recall with interest that recently, the morale of the resistance group had waned considerably since the beginning, a crucial test that the will could not fail. If a mind game was being constructed by the opposition, then a few of the other members might succumb at the current time; no matter how much she and her friends despised him, they had to admit that Busuzima, though eccentric, knew the right buttons to push. It was because of his cruel manipulation that one of Jenny's close companions, Stephen Goldberg, got turned into the hybrid form of his current condition, then took Alice's former lover away, and went even _further_ as to claim the life of his younger brother. The leopard zoanthrope felt baffled when she tried to think of a reason why anyone would willingly follow such a despicable creature as the estranged scientist, but she eventually chalked it up to his clever, albeit deceptive way of bending people's mind to his wishes.

Distracted for a split second, the training fighter overshot her next punch and her knuckles merely grazed the side of the hanging bag, while the rest of her body skid past from the furious momentum, causing her to stumble forth a bit with a muttered curse. After realizing the situation, her beau immediately began sprinting forward, but she quickly twisted around in an awkward small leap and managed to land back on her feet, so his help was unnecessary and he abruptly stopped in his tracks to start slowly retreating. Despite having been in a relationship with him for almost two years, Jane was still fiercely independent, and Long usually only assisted her when she signaled the need somehow, but when the young woman flashed him a brief flicker of a smile as she straightened herself up, he knew that she appreciated his concern. Then the vigorous blonde returned her attention to the training routine, paying more attention this time as to not make another mistake that would make her boyfriend feel worried, and with that, left the Kenpo master to his own thoughts even as he resumed vigilance.

Mindful of his past occupation as an assassin, Long sought to use his old instincts constructively in present day, and carefully calculated the aspects of the battle before he made any attacks, even constantly refreshing new information on his opponents throughout the fight. He rarely overreacted, and only did so when spotting his friends or allies in immediate fatal danger, to which he would cease his current task and rush over to aid them, especially if it happened to be his beloved significant other, whom he had rescued a couple of times before. The Kenpo master constantly exercised diligence, and on the other hand, while his girlfriend was perfectly aware of tactic and usually fought brilliantly with few injuries in the aftermath, her emotions did seize control on occasion and she acted upon them, rushing into conflict a little irrationally. Their most recent conflict with the Zoanthrope Liberation Front happened to be one of those times, and the large red lines running down her back was her prize, the numerous scratches given so _generously_ by an attack that she unfortunately had not foreseen.

The leopard zoanthrope was grateful for his interference and rescue, but the incident made her all the more determined to improve her skills in fighting, and so she increased the length and intensity of her daily training in hopes of becoming stronger and better. She certainly did not expect to cling onto her boyfriend's hand during every encounter and be a liability, especially in a critical time when the task of survival was placed on oneself, and only request help if the situation threatened to overwhelm a lone combatant. Her father and Jenny worked very well together, always backing their partner up in case of a split-second occurrence that could create a dilemma, but Jane herself felt that she was unable to conform, as she had grown too used to fending off foes solo. Another good reason for her effort to improve: her occupation was a probation officer, obviously specializing in criminal situations, so the more efficiency she exercised would aid her in the constant battle against adversaries outside of the troubles that the resistance group faced.

Long glanced her way now, unaware of all her thoughts, but knew full-well the course that her nature ran, and a slight frown of concern marred his brows when he noticed the sudden increase of tension in her body that stiffened her posture considerably. Determined to break the uneasy silence, he cleared his throat and remarked quietly, "Jane, I know that you are a bit preoccupied at the moment… but I was thinking of brewing up a pot of tea in the kitchen, and I wanted to know if you would like to take a short break from your training and join me?"

The female fighter froze in the middle of her routine at his suggestion, and she slowly straightened up to her normal height before turning around to face the previous speaker, her cool blue eyes gazing at him steadily as she inquired, "Tea, huh? What kind?"

"Hmm… jasmine, perhaps," he informed her after a brief thought, figuring she would agree since that was her favorite flavor, and then a slight smile graced his lips as the Chinese martial artist pivoted partway, clearly intending to head into the aforementioned room and make the tea.

"Well, if it's jasmine, I can't say no, can I?" Jane grinned at his clever ruse, and gave her worn beanbag one last casual tap before she crossed the short distance to be by her beau's side, the two silently strolling into the kitchen together, content with the mere proximity of their respective significant other. The blonde woman tilted her head to the side a bit as she absentmindedly glanced outside at the darkening sky, inwardly noting what the current time was; the amount of daylight hours during the summer usually misrepresented the real hour. She turned slightly and snuck a look at the clock for confirmation, then mentally mapped out what to do with the rest of her night, mildly aware that the Kenpo master next to her was pouring hot water into the two small cups that he had brought to the table. After the couple finished having tea, Long would most likely go upstairs to watch the Chinese drama on television as usual, while his girlfriend went to the study room and carefully read the files of her current cases, as it was crucial that she knew the criminals-in-question rather well.

"Jane…" he called gently as he pulled out a chair for her, true to the politeness and chivalry of his nature, "the tea is ready."

"Huh? Oh, yeah, thanks," she shook her head slightly to clear the distractions away and gingerly took the seat that he offered, giving him a small smile to express her gratitude before she picked up the teacup and took a sip, welcoming the pleasant flavor that slid down her throat.

The couple sat together and drank their beverage in silence for some time, both comfortable with the lack of meaningless conversation that would pass between other pairs, but the quiescent was finally shattered when Long inquired, "…How is your back? Have your injuries healed?"

"Mostly," she replied with a nod, her face momentarily darkening at the reminder of her carelessness in the previous encounter with the enemy, but then her expression reverted back to normal when she assured him, "I don't feel pain anymore, so they're probably just little scratches by now."

"…Good, that is a relief to hear." He glanced away for a brief period, and then returned to meet her cool blue eyes with his dark pair, speaking softly, but with the utmost sincerity, "I promise that I will be more aware in our next encounter to ensure that this won't happen to you again. I apologize for letting the enemy harm you in such a manner."

"Sheesh, you don't have anything to be sorry for, Long," the woman warrior scoffed lightly, and waved her free hand to dismiss the issue as she looked off to the side in mild unease with the notion of dependence, "And you don't have to watch me like I'll break at any second. Sure, I make mistakes sometimes, but I can deal with the consequences. Besides… I sure as hell don't want to be a burden to anyone."

He did not reply immediately following her last statement, and merely waited patiently until she had finally turned back to face him, though she avoided his gaze as if she felt embarrassed, which was odd in association with the leopard zoanthrope, considering her character.

"…What? You don't have anything to say?" Jane asked after her beau continued to stare at her for a bit, an edge of offense in her voice as she wondered why he was being so silent, and then instantly regretted the harshness of her tone when she knew that he meant well with his concern for her.

Instead of being hurt by her curtness, Long smiled gently and laid his hand on top of hers, securing his hold with a light squeeze, and surprised his significant other as indicated by her expression, and then he informed her assertively, "I would never consider you a burden, Jane. I merely wish to… protect you if the situation calls for it, but I would do that because of my complete free will, my feelings for you, not of obligation. If a severe attack should befall you one day, and I could have, but didn't prevent it from happening, I would curse the ineptitude of my worth…"

She glanced at him in silence for a full minute, absorbing his fervent words even as a flush threatened to color her cheeks, but she quickly destroyed the conception before it could take place; Shina the young war veteran did _not_ blush like a giggly, immature schoolgirl. "All right then," the blonde woman approved after some thought, "How about this? From now on, we'll look out for each other in battles. I've got your back, you've got mine; whoever's in trouble will get helped ASAP. But hey, don't take this as an excuse to have me come running to your rescue every time!"

"Heh, very well, I will try to restrain myself." Her last statement was said with a grin, so the Chinese martial artist knew of her jest, and he nodded his side of the agreement while raising his teacup, and after she did the same with her own, the couple brought their glasses together with a clink of concession.

Both took a sip of the hot liquid in unison as Long still kept his hand atop hers, and the certainty of his strength sent warmth coursing through her, to which Jane willingly accepted with just a brief hesitation to reflect on the similarity of her parents' situation, and then the two smiled fondly at each other.

Maybe tag-teaming with a partner in battle would not be such a bad idea after all…

-----

By the time Kenji finally returned to the cabin, stealthily slipping in through the entrance, night had already fallen for hours and his young captive was asleep inside, completely oblivious to his silent arrival even though she had been a bit worried in his absence. After he finished bathing, the seventeen-year-old had felt too restless to be in the same vicinity as Uriko, and was unsure of how he would react if he saw her that soon, and so he went venturing around the forest to clear his mind and do a little reflecting. The supposedly-ditzy brunette certainly was a courageous one to have given into his enticement, and not to mention she once again responded to him of her own free will, in spite of her fierce protests just days ago that he had forced her, and she loathed his touch completely. But by her willingness to help him earlier at the lake, he was now aware that the compassionate girl harbored some kind of care for him, though he did not know what type of concern, or how far its extent; well, if he desired to, he could certainly find out by testing the limits…

In the present time, he glanced at her briefly before averting his attention to putting his clothes away and replacing his shower belongings in their usual place, and then he went to the lavatory to prepare for bed, also dressing himself in more sleep-appropriate attire in the process. With a curt sigh that betrayed the fatigue of his condition, the ninja slowly descended to the cot, trying to be as quiet as possible so he would not disturb her rest, and when he was lying down on his back, he suddenly felt compelled to look at her. Seeing no harm in gratifying the strange inner request, Kenji turned his head to the side, and his gaze fell to the peaceful, serene expression of the girl quietly slumbering next to him, instantly noticing a few strands of stray hair that were lingering over her closed eyelids. By an instinct that he could only act out and not explain, he found himself reaching across the short distance and grasping a gentle hold of the elusive tress, tucking them behind her ear, but then he quickly retracted his arm, uneasy with the foreign action.

_I…I will **not** betray my master for a mere girl-child._ His eyes hardened at the silent declaration, and a familiar glint of steel returned to dwell in his hell-black pupils as the determined assassin immediately changed his position so that his back was facing Uriko, the temptation of that enchantress gone from sight. He had held the girl, kissed her, and was the first one to touch her in such an intimate way, but he did so just to satisfy the burning curiosity of his absurd attraction to her; surely she shared his mindset, for the dainty youth always responded after evident reluctance. Yes, once he had his fill and grew tired of her, she would no longer have this weak, but definite hold over his desires, and he could resume treating her with placid indifference, as if she was just another ordinary victim without any notable uniqueness. The young ninja had occasionally given into the primitive urge of seeking pleasure through using her body, but that was temporary amusement, and certainly did not mean she could control his actions, or bait him into doing her bidding.

Scoffing at the idea of being held captive to one under his watch, who was supposed to be submissive and obey _his_ will, Kenji shook his head firmly at the asinine thought, banishing it from existence; he had just wanted a taste of her sweetness, nothing more…


	33. The Seduction Project

_Candy and chocolates to Andrew Glasco for his great characterization ideas that contributed to this chapter and I also wanted to extend my apologies to my poor readers for waiting so long for the update._

**Chapter 33**

**The Seduction Project**

Lying comfortably on the bed in the cottage, Uriko slept rather peacefully, and for once experienced a dream that did not include a gruesome scene depicting her demise, so she smiled subconsciously to show her approval at the hope intertwined with her goal. She felt comforted by the adoration sending warmth through her slender form, and her hands randomly groped around the mattress, seeking the comfort of another human body, but to her surprise, the search came up with nothing, which alerted her senses. Slightly startled at the absence of a usual motionless body next to her, the brunette awoke almost instantly, her hazy eyes focusing on the scene before her as she shook sleep from her consciousness, a small yawn escaping her lips with the ending of her afternoon nap. Upon confirming that the ninja was indeed not present, she glanced around the room trying to locate him, and felt perplexed that he had gone somewhere, considering the growing dark outside and his still-healing condition, even though their last fight had occurred several days ago.

"Umm… weird…" the lone girl mused to herself as she shook her head in slight bewilderment, and then slowly arose from the bed, a bit dazed from sleeping for such a long period, as she had joined Kenji earlier while he took his recently-routine nap. The Kenpo student had practiced quite fervently that afternoon, as she still desired to attain her freedom despite her morals against the methods of getting there, but because of her perseverance, she was extremely exhausted by the time she returned to the cabin. With only the thought of rest clinging to her weary mind and not even worrying about what her bed partner would think, Uriko carelessly collapsed next to the dozing ninja, who probably did not notice her lying beside him until he woke up first and left. Remembering her haste in getting to sleep, the girl presently glanced down at her dirty clothes and wrinkled her nose in distaste; perhaps the assassin was out on his strange nightly raids, and if so, then it would be the perfect opportunity to take advantage of such privacy and bathe.

"Hrmp, I'm glad he's gone… at least I won't have to hear his arrogant, sneering remarks for a while," however, even with such an attitude, a small frown formed over her face – Kenji had been rather different lately, acting more civilized and treating her with the rarity of respect, which she had presumed he was incapable of doing. Even though the memory of his abrupt, sudden kiss and embrace those couple of nights ago made her nervous around him the following days, he had done nothing lately to show that he wanted a repeat performance of their recent intimacy. Uriko was very relieved at his mild temper, and the two had not conversed much since the end of the second battle in their deal, but she felt that they could finally tolerate each other; maybe there was hope for them to get along, after all. A tiny smile graced her lips at the thought of a possible truce, and the serene female strolled over to her bag to retrieve the proper supplies, intending on leaving the cottage soon to take her desired bath, and soon, she flung the door open with a happy sigh.

Releasing a heavy breath, she ran outside with her materials wrapped up inside her large towel, and just started heading for the usual path leading to the lake, not even caring that she left the entrance of the cottage available to anyone who wanted to go in. The playful girl breathed in the cool evening air as she walked, and even dared to close her eyes in emphasis of how comfortable she felt with her current surroundings, a sharp contrast to her position three weeks ago; things certainly were different from the beginning! Right now, she was one step closer to attaining her freedom, and even though it worried her to wonder if Alice and the others would search for her a few days later, since Uriko assumed that camp had alerted them of her absence, the sixteen-year-old thought it might not even be necessary if she was just able to beat Kenji in their last battle. His skills and techniques were indeed higher and more evolved than her current level, but she was quickly learning to use her own body effectively in fighting, so she intended on being a decent opponent, and their final bout would probably be a very close match… whenever _that_ took place.

As the brunette strolled through the dark forest, she thought that they seemed to be a normal setting to her now, which brought on a troubled feeling – could she actually have gotten used to staying in this strange place so far away from her precious home? She shook her head, unwilling to dwell on the pessimistic possibility, and instead refocused on journeying over to the lake, her lips slightly pursed in worry as she tried not to think about being too comfortable in her kidnapped location, or around the dangerous and spontaneous ninja. The surface of the lake shimmered glamorously before her view, a mere hundred feet away, seeming to be inviting her for a dip inside, and a smile formed over her lips once more from feeling relieved that she would soon be in the presence of earnest tranquility. Uriko happily bounded through the trees and out into the open clearing, her eyes shining with vivid excitement, and she lingered around the entrance of the setting, inhaling and exhaling slowly to feel the full effects of freedom; oh, how much she would love to finally take hers back from that domineering Kenji…

Unknown to her, the young man in question had earlier arrived at the vicinity that both he and his captive used as their personal bathing area; his supplies were resting at the trunk of a nearby tree, and having disrobed, he was already in the water. Unashamed of his person, but still not fond of being out in the open while conducting private business, he had tucked himself in a corner of the lake, and throughout the task, his light eyes carefully scrutinized the last bit of sun casting upon the horizon, taking mental note of the time rather than admiring its natural splendor. Before he noticed the newcomer, Kenji sighed curtly as he continued to wash himself at a leisure pace, pleased that the cool liquid upon his skin felt quite endearing to the tight muscles of his body, almost like his form was being tendered by nature… which reminded him of how Uriko had been taking care of him. Aside from the obvious fact that she was his current primary concern, he realized that he had probably invested more effort in her than any of his other previous assignments, and even despite the occasions when she tried his patience, there were rare times when, one earnest and sweet smile from her could calm him down.

The ninja only felt disturbed because he was unable to explain the reason why she had such an effect on him, almost as if she held some inexplicable power that wavered his sternness toward her, but oddly… not once had he regretted his decision to tolerate her nonsense, or offer her freedom. Perhaps his physical attraction to her was becoming dangerous, and although he could avoid it with effort, the desire to engage in 'certain' activities with her seemed to be getting more difficult to resist, with his body demanding completion each time. His mind lingered over his captive, frustrated with so many questions and no answers… he knew how to attain a certain level of dominion over her, but that was not enough – he had to have complete power in the situation without compromise. But one interesting note Kenji made was the awareness of her noticeably more generous behavior towards him as of late; so as long as he refrained from hurling insults at her, Uriko showed genuine concern for his well-being, and took care of him to the best of her ability, and limited resources.

His train of thought was suddenly shattered by a faint rustling noise in the distance, and his eyes instantly turned toward the direction of the source, unsure if his ears had been deceptive, as he saw nothing beyond the plethora of foliage, but continued listening carefully, trusting his instincts. When a sigh of delicious abandon sounded from near the entrance, the young man was quite certain of another person being present, and then footsteps ensued to let him know of their current position, which allowed him to swiftly, but quietly exit the lake and hurry behind a tree. Its broadness hid him from the view of the approaching newcomer, and even though common sense told him that it was most likely Uriko, being cautious had saved his life more than once, so he remained intent on concealing himself until he wished to relinquish the privacy. Sure enough, within minutes, the aforementioned girl came bounding down into his line of sight, and quickly skipped over to the rock, a joyous connotation in her bouncy step, one that normally would have annoyed Kenji if he were in a different situation.

Standing atop the rock, the brunette teenager glanced over the water, a decisive smile on her face as she bent down and set her belongings on the hard surface, and after rising again, she slowly began to strip, believing no one was watching except for nature's platonic and non-judgmental eyes. The furtive ninja carefully peeked around the bend and caught sight of his young captive as she shed her confining articles, and although it was an innocent action of itself, he found her tantalizing, enticing, and even captivating. Uriko finished peeling her clothes off, letting them flutter aimlessly to rest next to her feet, and soon, she was fully nude, though feeling rather unabashed, thinking that she had very little reason to be, since there was presumably no audience present. Tilting her head to the side, the girl unbraided her long hair, her slender fingers slipping through the silky strands to free them of the usual daily confinement as her unblemished skin shone alabaster from the moonlight, naked underneath the unearthly glow.

And once finished unbinding her hair, the lithe girl slipped the scrunchies over her wrist, and then a nervous smile graced her lips as she glanced down at the water, wondering if it was deep enough to dive into, though she figured it was best not to take such a risk. She crouched down instead and gingerly slipped into the water feet-first, and her lower body quickly disappeared underneath the surface, only rising briefly so the girl could retrieve her soap from the rock and begin lathering herself. After she washed her upper body, Uriko carefully leaned her back against the below-surface part of the rock for support before she lifted a single, slender leg up into the air, and then she scrubbed the smooth flesh with the soap. The process was repeated with the opposite length and quiet giggling ensued from the cheerful female when she wriggled her toes in delight, feeling the slightly slipperiness tickling in-between them, though she was ultimately relieved that she could finally be her playful self without fearing a lecture or reprisal.

Meanwhile, her young voyeur licked his understandably dried lips as he watched her show intently, his amber eyes taking in every alluring curve of her exceptionally well-maintained body, silently admitting in his mind how sexually appealing he found her. He watched Uriko's every motion through hungry, yet curious eyes, already wanting her rather badly, as a certain now-stiff part of his male anatomy had alerted him the moment he had first caught sight of his beautiful, oblivious captive. From her usual attitude, Kenji would have expected a rejection of his advances should he make a move toward her… and yet, she seemed have warmed up to him substantially as of late, so had he not nearly reached a point of consent with her? His captive had turned away from him when he had previously tried to entice her, but he wondered how she might react to his advance now, and after a quick deliberation, he decided that her simple bathing presented a tempting opportunity that was too irresistible to pass up.

Feeling justified in his own mind as to why he should be permitted to walk in on her, the stealthy ninja silently left the hiding place of the tree and began to stalk toward the seductive body that called to him, with her wet skin glistening brilliantly underneath the moonlight. Completely unknowing of his presence, Uriko retracted her leg so that it went back under the water, she twirled around in a few circles with the intention of rinsing her lower body off, not wanting to reach down laboriously and manually wash the soap away when a simpler action would suffice. When she stopped, her head felt just slightly dizzy and the girl giggled at her own silliness, relieved that she could actually do something casual and freely without a certain pair of amber pupils watching her intently, while its owner intimidated her with his silent power. Her eyes slowly drifted to a close as her breathing evened, clearly expressing her content with the current peacefulness, and unfortunately, in her relaxation she was completely unaware of the young man that was quietly making his way to her position.

He spoke naught a word until the moment that the cool water had reached his knees, and by that time, an almost unholy light of need was burning in his twin light-colored orbs; "That was a truly enticing and beautiful dance, my kitten…"

"Huh…?" The serenity disturbed, Uriko instantly whirled around upon hearing the voice and gasped as she instantly submitted to the old-fashioned gesture of modesty as her arms quickly flew up to cover her chest. "K-Kenji! Wh-where did you come from…?!"

The ninja gave her no answer and merely continued to walk toward the object of his desire, slowly decreasing the distance between them with each casual step, and a predatory gleam flickered briefly across his face, indicating his shameless yearning.

His silence made her suddenly feel nervous… and when she gave him the once-over, her eyes caught sight of his noticeable arousal just a second before his hips slipped underneath the surface; seeing his blatant need for her sent a slight tingle down her spine. "O-oh, oh my gosh…"

Kenji almost grinned at her reaction of shock, but that gesture was quickly overridden by his overwhelming desire to have the luscious girl in his arms, feel her wet body succumbing under his tough, and to crush her soft lips against his. "My dear, know that such a tantalizing dance should not be hoarded and seen only by the trees nearby… Will you grace me with a private performance, my lovely seductress?"

"Eep…!" Cowering from her pursuer, Uriko lowered herself into the lake's protective sheath until only her shoulders showed, and she her eyes frantically searched the surroundings for a safe place to get out, although she preferred not to leave in the nude. "Why…why are you in here…? I-if you didn't notice, I-I'm trying to take a bath! Please, get out-! Leave me alone…!"

He enjoyed watching the fear darting across her facial features and the jittery movement of her body trying to escape from him, and the persistent ninja seemed unashamed and undaunted as he stalked even closer to her with his long, confident strides. "Oh, I am well-acknowledged that you are bathing, for I have been watching from the beginning… but I certainly have no intention of leaving this vicinity."

"Wh-what…?" Startled by his admittance, she now felt very exposed and rather ashamed for being so casual and expressive with her body, playing around under the guise of ignorant freedom, and the girl began to back away, matching each of his steps. "I-I don't want you here…! Please, just go…"

His eyes were strongly trained upon her form, intensity shining therein, and there was a twinge of sarcastic pleasure in his voice as he remarked coolly, "Oh, my apologies, my precious little kitten, but I am afraid that I cannot comply with your request."

Her own eyes narrowed suspiciously at his strange tone, cleverly suspecting that he had some sort of sinister ploy in mind for her, and she trembled a bit as her question came out hesitantly, "Why not…?"

He stated flatly in a dark whisper, "…Because I want you."

Chewing her lip in worry, Uriko cringed from his response, even though she had expected an answer of that sort, and yet she was mildly surprised that he would be so blatantly honest. Her timidity was obvious as she protested, "Um… b-but I don't… I don't want… No, Kenji. Please don't force me again…"

A dangerous smile curved his lips in faint response to her accusation, but he felt no embarrassment or guilt regarding her proclamation, and instead he sought to shatter her firm resilience by reminding her of how passionately she had yielded to him. "…Dear Uriko, you are fooling yourself if you believe that. I did _not_ force you that time in the cottage. You had plenty of opportunities to prevent that escapade, and yet you relented, and writhed beneath me at my touch. Just admit that you enjoyed it… Fear not, my precious little kitten, for you will enjoy those sensations once again tonight."

"N-no…" Though her mind conjured up the memory, she still shook her head insistently while mentally she denied his words, and tried to convince herself that she had not desired him; she merely responded to his manipulations. "I-I didn't want it! W-we… we won't do that… ever again! It was just a mistake…! I was, um… I was…"

Her protests were of little significance to him, and Kenji was more interested in the small crevice of the lake that the unsuspecting girl was effectively backing herself into, and thus his strides forward became faster, eager to trap her. "Though you spit forth such blistering gems, I sense that you seem uncertain of your words… I wonder why."

She shivered a little from the urgent heat in his voice, the flames of need in his eyes, and despite her avid resistance, she found herself gazing rather intently at his hard muscles that glistened from the moonlight as his lean body came forth in pursuit of the chase. "I-I'm serious! Look, I know… I know that you're really curious about new things, and I… um, I was just happened to be there. But… but Kenji, that's not a good reason to keep on doing something like that with someone that you don't really like…"

Tired of her excuses for her actions and her arrogance in assuming that she knew the reasons for his, Kenji spat back, almost indignantly, "My sweet, innocent kitten, do you not think that I could have had any captive I wanted in the past? I have had my choice of women, but I decided not to be with any of them."

"But… why me? I'm not… anything special…"

His smirk shielded his uncertainty, but he answered her earnestly, "Now, if I knew the answer to that, then where would the excitement be? It would be more interesting to discover the reason by exploring all of the possible options… do you not agree?"

At a loss for words, Uriko just continued to retreat, but her movement ceased to be when a sturdy, immobile obstacle met her back, and she froze at the contact, sneaking a peek over her shoulder to see that she was in an enclosed part of the lake. The wall behind her was rather high, she would have to elevate quite a few feet to climb out, but she had no time to do such a thing with the ninja approaching her at his swift pace, and so the brunette quickly turned around to scrunch up her body tightly against the crevice. A small whimper escaped her lips as her eyes squeezed shut in expectance that he would easily find some way to dislodge her from the steadfast protection to get what he wanted, and indeed, she heard him laugh at her feeble attempt of escaping. He was not to be deterred from his goal and denied what he wanted, and Kenji swiftly walked up to press himself against her back, and after his hands latched onto her hips, he craned his head down, breathily kissed along her nape.

She immediately jumped from the feel of his lips on her sensitive skin, and then she shot her arms down in the direction of his arms, grasping a hold of them in hopes of pushing the ninja away, though that made her stance open and vulnerable to his advantage. Aggravated by her resistance, Kenji instead pulled back with one arm and grasped her side firmly as he roughly whipped her around to face him, and with a small gasp of pain, she unwillingly followed the motion of his pull and was turned around. His harsh treatment of her person would undoubtedly mark her skin with bruises, but that train of thought was quickly discarded, however, as she soon found a hard body pressed against her soft curves, and then the imprisoned girl felt a certain…stiff presence…grazing her lower region. Fear igniting within her at his steadfast persistence, Uriko turned her face away to avoid being kissed while she whispered frantically, her voice ragged with desperation, "N-no…! Kenji, p-please, let me go…!"

"Relax, Uriko… just enjoy yourself. I promise you will love it…" he enticed her in a rough whisper, and then he raised a hand to cup one of her breasts, gently kneading the smooth flesh as he licked and suckled upon the skin of her neck.

"Nngh… no, I-I won't…!" She whimpered her defiance softly even as her body instantly reacted to his touch, her nipple perking up eagerly, and the peak was very sensitive from the chill of the lake and receptive to the skillful administration of his fingers.

The girl shivered visibly as he seductively teased her neck and stroked her breasts with both hands, and truly, her body was confused in trying to please both the owner, but also wishing to succumb to the fiery desires of the insistent ninja. He was keen to her responses and recalled the delightful memory of their last encounter as he continued to kiss and drag his lips along the smooth curve of her neck, his other hand traveling beneath the water to briefly brush his fingers along the outer petals of her delicate flower. A sudden jolt alerted her nerves when Uriko became aware of his presence so close to her nether entrance, and she forcibly dug her nails into his arm to wrench the length away from her private area while leaving the rest of her form open to his desires. His arm was wrenched away from her entrance, but Kenji was not put off, and his tongue made a light circle over her soft skin just before he pursed his lips over a small patch of skin, sucked intently upon it, and at that, he felt her knees weaken against his legs.

Uriko shivered at the sensation of his heated mouth cleverly manipulating her body, and a tingle shot down her spine when his free hand trailed from her breast down to her abdomen, tickling her slightly, though she felt no urge to giggle at the moment. His fingers were very hot as he gradually explored each luscious inch of her smooth curves, bringing warmth to her cool skin wherever he touched, despite the fact that she had been bitterly cold before from the frosty temperature of the lake. The strength of her resistance dwindling, her lips pursed a bit in expectation of a kiss, the soft pink pair strangely desiring a partner, and this tiny factor did not go unnoticed by the ninja, who chuckled a bit in anticipation of attaining her surrender. Kenji dragged his mouth away from her neck with some reluctance, to glide up her shivering skin and head toward her lips, while his free hand skimmed along the curve of her body to have the back of his hand gently caress her cheek before he leaned in and kissed her.

The provoked girl almost smiled at his sweet, careful touch, but when she pulled back to glance at the ninja before her, a moist look inhabited her dark eyes, filled with sympathy and a sliver of a faint when she spotted the thin lines she had scratched into his face many days ago. She was honestly surprised that Kenji had not retaliated and taken a form of harsh revenge to her for that, even though she knew he was a dedicated fighter and should have been familiar with receiving injuries; still, that did nothing to ease the pang of guilt pricking at her conscience. Chewing her lower lip nervously, Uriko removed her hand from his arm and steadily raised it to gently graze her fingertips upon his skin, circling around the wounds instead of coming into direct contact, her touch delicate and cautious. Kenji actually flinched in surprise to her unexpected advance, but he soon regained his cool composure and quickly pressed his lips to hers with an undeniable hunger, his intent amber eyes hidden as they drifted to a close.

"Mmm-!" Her moan was muffled as he pushed her back with the force of his passionate kiss; his lips roamed over hers rather roughly and tugged at the soft skin, occasionally nibbling her with his teeth, their hot breaths mingling together in urgent need. Her palm cupped his cheek with the forward movement, causing her nails to accidentally scratch briefly across his lines of injury when skittered over the surface, and Kenji groaned just slightly at the action, stifled by the union with her lips, but he persisted. His hand wandered away from her face back down to her breast, massaging her with his skillful hand, and Uriko gasped into his mouth, her eyes squeezed shut to feel the sensation of his caresses, and she clutched him a bit more firmly, feeling his heat burning her delicate skin. His fingertips lightly danced across her nipple, a mere teasing action that made the girl almost press her breast harder against him, but she was able to fight the urge, not wanting to appear too forward, although she certainly enjoyed his strokes.

His hand continued its dance over her soft mound, trying to lull her into submission of her own pleasure; embracing the daring nature of his actions, Kenji parted his lips and allowed his tongue to escape the boundaries, seeking solace in the moist insides beyond her lips. His captive kept her mouth clamped shut and turned her head away in a weak, ineffective struggle, but when he continued the pursuit and nipped at her persuasively, the girl hesitantly relented and parted her lips to allow him entrance. A barely-audible moan escaped from her at that moment as the slow teasing of his lean fingers tightened her nipple to the point of an almost-painful ache, his digits lightly caressing a hard peak that wanted firmer, more explicit treatment. He dropped his hand to her hip once more, pressing himself to her more prominently, his chest to hers, and at the feel of his hard muscles against her soft breasts, Uriko squirmed slightly, as she was very aware of his arousal pressed vividly against her thigh, the unspoken power of his length frightening her.

The girl whimpered noticeably into his mouth at the memory of the pain he had brought her right after the pleasuring climax last time, while her muscles tensed up visibly, and yet everywhere Kenji touched, she burned with an overpowering need. The ardent ninja allowed his hand to trail from her hip around and freely grasped one of her buttocks, her soft, unblemished skin a sheer delight on his fingers, and their kiss lingered as he eagerly and thoroughly explored her body, save one area… His lips hovered over her sweet pair, mere millimeters away and then suddenly, Uriko released his other arm, submitting to a voiceless inner desire to allow his exploration to be more thorough, to which he silently laughed in triumph. Both of his hands moved to massage her soft mounds, and a blissful sigh escaped her lips, drifting across to his cheek at the pleasuring sensation of his hands carefully molding her breasts together and teasing her sensitive nipples.

Finally, Kenji broke the kiss, but he gave her not a single moment to reorient herself as he hastily leaned down and captured one of her nipples between his lips, sucking her with a firm gentleness while his hand continued to massage the opposite breast. Uriko bit her lip in reflex, and kept her eyes closed as her natural bodily urges and desires were brought to life, much like the time before, and her once-firm resolutions quickly fled as she concentrated solely on feeling rather than feasible reason. Her hardened nipple perked eagerly within his hot, moist mouth, happy to have his wet, slick tongue encircling and rubbing against the small peak, bringing further stimulation to the girl that caused her nether region to pulsate with an unknown craving. He gazed intensely at her through narrowed slits as he softly nibbled at her and lashed his tongue over her sensitive nipple; bringing her pleasure so that she would willingly allow him to take her was his goal, and one that he pursued very strongly.

The lack of harmful intent and unnecessary pressure from his actions were enough to convince her that he would not hurt her this time… and so after releasing a shaky sigh, the girl hesitantly slipped her arms around his neck, blush dotting her cheeks as she pressed her breast harder into his mouth. Her ninja companion was a bit surprised at all the noticeable changes at once, and presumed that Uriko was making a conscious decision to give into him, and it boosted his confidence in his actions, feeling she truly did want everything he was now giving to her. To test his theory, Kenji broke away from her breast and found her lips in a fervent, almost abrasive burst of energy, to which she jerked back a little and slid her arms down to grasp his shoulders, but upon realizing that he just wanted a simple kiss, she relaxed again. The girl was much gentler in her response, kissing him back with timid hesitation as she was unsure of what he truly wanted, so she decided to proceed with caution; he broke their embrace and smiled charismatically as he looked at her to gauge the reaction upon her face and in her eyes.

Startled by the sudden parting, her eyes slowly fluttered open, cloudy and hazy with her swirling, confused emotions as the girl shyly peered back at her partner, her cheeks blushing a light pink as she asked, "Why… why are you looking at me like that, Kenji…?"

He said nothing, deciding to response by simply licking over her lips with a single, slow stroke of his tongue.

"O-oh!" Surprised by the luscious action, Uriko shivered to his gesture, and then she timidly turned her head away, bashfully not wanting the ninja to witness the steadily growing desire that was becoming evident in her dark pupils.

The lean ninja craned his head down and kissed about her neck, reaching down into the lake once more to skim his fingers around her entrance, but not yet comfortable with allowing him to touch her there, she decided to do something rather bold for her current stance and grabbed a hold of his elusive wrist.

"Hm…?" His eyes searched her expression intently, shock rather evident in his amber eyes as the girl gingerly placed his hand over her bosom; he was silent for a few moments, but then eagerly began to rub her breast, whispering lowly, "Mmm… wonderful, my precious kitten…"

Her cheeks were still ablaze with a hot blush as she murmured curiously, "Wh-why do you say that…? O-oh…" Her eyes closed and a slight sigh elicited out from her lips when he stroked the delicate mound, his touch electrifying her sensitive nerves.

"You see now, there is no reason to resist such a marvelous sensation, Uriko…" he whispered convincingly, and then tipped his head to nibble upon her earlobe as his fingers kneaded her erect nipple; he murmured hotly, his breath fanning her trembling skin, "You feel the warmth that it conjures up within… how your body tightens and coils in aching need, craving release…"

Gulping nervously, she permitted him a slight nod in confirmation and her head lolled back to grant Kenji more access to her neck, and her lips pursed together in reaction to his fingers flicking over her sensitive peak. She barely managed to admit breathlessly, "Y-yes… b-but… why do I feel like this…?"

"Hah… you do not have to pretend with me, my dear." He flicked her earlobe with his tongue, and then gently sucked her dainty lobe while his hands continuously squeezed her breasts, delighted with the feel of her softness. "Would you claim to be utterly ignorant of sexuality? That, I find quite difficult to believe…"

She moaned helplessly when he tweaked her nipples between his fingers, and then her words were spoken with earnest truth as Uriko protested quietly, "I-I don't know… really, I don't… I, I've never done this before…"

"Neither have I… but I understand my instincts, and I am certain that you feel them as well," he insisted knowingly, and craned his head up to kiss her once more, but quickly broke it off and just stood silently, breathing hotly upon her tender lips.

The girl nodded slightly and her eyes were half-open as she gazed intensely at the ninja, her chocolate brown orbs slowly filling with rising passion, although she was unaware of the display being exposed to his perceptive nature. "Y-yes, I-I do… It… it feels really… really nice…"

A faint grin reached his lips as he was slightly touched by her admission; "Do you remember our last encounter? This time, it will not end on a sore note, and I would go as far as guaranteeing the pleasure you will feel. But, in order to experience that sensation again, you will have to cooperate, and trust me with your body. I can assure you that I have no desire to bring you any harm, Uriko. We can both enjoy ourselves… do you not agree?"

Her lips trembled a bit at the reminder, and she cringed slightly at the unpleasant memory; she lowered her eyes just then, as she was a little shy in asking her next question, "B-but… how can you promise something like that…? You don't… you don't know why it hurt last time…"

"While it is true that I may not understand the technicalities… I can still piece the puzzle together." To further entice her and mar her insecurities, Kenji pressed his lips to hers once more suddenly, kissing her passionately for several moments before he broke the contact. "What do you think, Uriko? Do you accept my proposal…?"

Though a tad breathless from his kiss, she was still able to laugh for just a little bit before it quickly died away. Her voice took on a suspicious tone as she uttered aloud in bewildered wonder, "Why… why does it seem like you know more than me, even though you said… you said that you don't have any experience…"

His face hardened a tad in the realization that she apparently did not trust him as much as he had thought in that moment. "I am merely following my instincts. I have no reason to lie to you regarding this matter."

She turned back to look into his eyes, uncertainly clearly evident in her twin brown pupils as they desperately sought an answer from the ninja, a silent plea in them for him to be completely honest with her; she wanted to believe him. "Oh, really… don't you, Kenji?"

"Yes, really. What purpose would it suit for me to do so?" There was no trace of dishonesty within his nonchalant expression, but his brows knit together in a small frown, as truthfully, he felt that he could have her if he really wanted any way… but he just preferred her consent, for in that manner, it would be easier to achieve his intentions.

Bewilderment briefly flickered in her eyes as she answered truthfully, "I dunno…"

He was growing a bit annoyed with her persistent disbelief; "I assure you, Uriko, I am not lying."

She quietly thought it over in her mind, and after a few moments, Uriko concluded that although his ethics were questionable, he had not lied to her as of yet and so she had no reason to distrust him… unless he would break his word. Bravely, she stared directly at him and decided to place her faith in his hands, so she softly murmured softly her compliance, "O-okay then… Sh-show me these… these strange new feelings, Kenji…"


	34. Reprisal Of Rejection

_Much gratitude and props to Andrew Glasco for his generous contribution to this chapter._

**Chapter 34**

**Reprisal Of Rejection**

…She had given him her permission.

Secretly pleased with her submission and eager to proceed, the stoic ninja nevertheless hid his approval and merely looked at her in silence for several moments before he replied calmly, "Good. You will not be disappointed. So, tell me, my kitten… What have you enjoyed most thus far?" He felt no shame in asking her this, as he truly wanted to know.

Taken back by such a blatant question, Uriko jolted in reaction, appearing rather startled while her cheeks blushed furiously, once again signifying her nature of innocence, but she managed to respond nervously, "H-holy Mackerel, what a question to ask…!"

Kenji chuckled in amusement and gently stroked her cheek with the back of his chilled hand, an almost-soothing gesture to assure her. "You do want to enjoy this, am I not right? My dear little kitten, while I may see your reactions, only you can tell me how you feel, and what truly… entices your desires."

"U-um, well… I-I guess, but…" Despite her agreement, the shy girl was far too embarrassed to voice her desires vocally, and so she grabbed a hold of his arm, deciding to show her partner instead; if it was possible, her face got much redder while she whispered her following words very, very softly. "I-I like it when you kiss me here… a-and…" The blushing girl briefly tapped her neck with his fingers, and then, unable to speak anymore, she languidly rested his hand in the valley between her breasts, fervently hoping that he would not need further explanations.

"Do you mean something like this…?" To confirm her bashful claim, he softly brushed his lips along the slender curve of her neck, ghosting over the sensitive area with tender care as he lightly tickled her cool skin to gauge her reaction.

Giggling softly, she managed a slight nod while averting her eyes, suddenly feeling very timid around the young man as if she had just revealed a soul-searing secret to him. Her reply was faint, just barely reaching his ears, "Y-yeah…"

"Then my learning has served me well." A slight grin graced his lips, a visible indication of his satisfaction with her honesty, even though he remembered from their past experience what actions brought her pleasure, but it was an enjoyment to know that she really enjoyed his administrations.

"I…I think you know more than you're telling me…" her hands splayed across his well-toned chest and absently skimmed over his frigid flesh, her fingertips resting upon his heartbeat to feel his accelerated pace from passion.

"I am keenly critical of detail." It was the only explanation Kenji deemed necessary to inform her, and that topic was quickly forgotten as he slowly licked and sucked a secluded spot on her neck; his hands absently rubbed up and down along her sides, etching every curve of her body into his mind.

"Mmm…" An earnest smile accompanied her small moan, and she allowed her eyes to close and her arms leisurely rose to intertwine around the back of his neck as the girl voicelessly urged Kenji to continue what he was doing, her nerves tingling slightly from his gentle, enticing teasing. While his lips and tongue continued around the concave of her throat, his lean fingers glided down over to her abdomen, feeling her shiver in response, and then they glided up and over her breasts before he circled them slowly back to grasp her hips. The enraptured ninja could not help silently admitting just how much he adored the feeling of her silky skin yielding under his touch, and soon, he assured his eager desires, he would be intimately sheathed within her warmth. As if hearing his thoughts, Uriko pressed herself a little more firmly against him just then, and when she moved her hips a bit to get into a comfortable position, her alluring softness rubbed the contrasting hardness of his stiff arousal.

His skillful hands were effectively seducing her into completely giving into him as she suddenly spoke in protest to his gradual, leisure method of attaining her consent, with a slight pout in her voice, "K-Kenji… you're… you're teasing me again…"

"Is that so? I am only giving you what you asked for, my dearest kitten…" A sly glint briefly flickered in his light pupils at her admission that she indeed wanted to proceed further, eventually leading to him being able to fulfill the curiosity that he had from the very beginning. "However, if this is not to your satisfaction, then tell me what your body desires."

"I… I…" Uriko was inwardly grateful that because her face had been tucked into the hollow of his neck, her perceptive partner could not see her crimson cheeks, although on a subconscious level, she thought that he probably knew just the same. "I-I, um, I want to feel what I felt last time… d-do you remember what… what I'm talking about…?"

They both were acknowledged of the proper term for it, but he cared not to force her into actually saying the word that she found so utterly embarrassing.

"Hmm… yes, I do recall that particular incident. In fact, your teeth marks are still etched just faintly upon my neck." Reveling in her shiver at the mention of her reaction, the young man moved around to her ear and whispered in assurance, "I will allow you to revisit that feeling…"

Even as he spoke of his plan, one hand was furtively gliding down her side, reaching her thigh, and then his hand slowly wound around to the crevice between her legs… his fingers milling teasingly over her entrance once again. His blatant and forward approach made her feel vulnerable under the influence of his strength, but nevertheless Uriko slowly parted her legs, albeit hesitantly, allowing her eager partner to journey into the area that he was so curious about investigating. This was interpreted as her silent admission that the girl did indeed want to feel the explosive desire she had experienced their previous time, to which Kenji smiled faintly in response, having finally achieved his desired goal, and with her willing, without question. His lean digits loitered tantalizingly outside of her private area for several long moments before he elected for his index and middle finger to slowly breach her sensitive petals to the warm insides beyond, beginning his careful exploration.

The brunette bit her lip slightly at the feel of his fingers entering her sacred region, and she clutched her partner more tightly, trying to assure her body to relax and enjoy his touch; she emitted a small gasp when his thumb gently pressed down upon her sensitive clit. The familiar sensation was not lost on her and she thought dazedly, _Th-there's that feeling again…_

He was avidly receptive to her reaction and again, he lightly ran his fingertips over the small button while remarking casually, "Oh, you seem to emit quite a reaction when I touch this spot… Tell me, my precious little kitten… what do you feel?"

Too embarrassed to elicit words to describe her feelings, she shook her head slightly in silent refusal to his request, although her body did raise up a bit and her legs opened a little more to give him better access, while his exploring fingers danced around her sensitive area.

The ninja chuckled knowingly and briefly firmed his touch, grinning when he felt her jolt; despite the cold chill of the lake, he was nevertheless well aware of the sudden burst of warm wetness that surrounded his digits, undeniable evidence of her arousal. "I believe that I can deduct my own explanation…"

He continued caressing her inside, two fingers exploring deep within her, while his thumb occasionally ran along her clit to get a reaction; his other hand wandered to one of her breasts yet again, beginning to toy with the now faintly-familiar mound. His tongue slid across her ripe nipple, encircling it into his mouth with a firm suckle, gently scraping his teeth over her aureole; his lean digits worked on satisfying her bodily craving, and his thumb began to run over her clit with intentionally increasing frequency. The enraptured girl gasped out loud and jerked a little each time her partner grazed the tiny nub with his fingers, beginning to relax as she grew better accustomed, although a small wanton part of her wanted to ask him to be more aggressive and increase the pace of his rubbing. Her normal mindset was a tad overwhelmed with sensation and Uriko eagerly leaned her breast against his palm with a soft sigh, not even bothering to deny now that she was thoroughly enjoying all that he was administering.

A small hiss pushed its way out of her mouth just then, much like one her feline counterpart would emit regarding an emotion that could not be expressed in another way, as no amount of coaxing from the intensely-concentrating ninja would make her willingly admit in words how much she enjoyed his caresses. His fingers worked faster, and more intently as time went on; he was greatly enjoying himself, both in fulfilling his curiosity and other needs, and while he continued to please her most sensitive area, his free hand idly glided along her soft body. As the feeling grew stronger, Uriko released a sigh of pleasure and rested the side of her against his shoulder while her hand lightly trickled over the back of his neck, and then she gave into an inner impulse, licking the ninja on his lightly sweat-sheen neck. A faint, wistful smile graced her lips as a steady purr began to rumble deeply within her throat, an unspoken approval of his actions, the noise visibly rippling against her partner's flesh and making it rather noticeable if he was paying attention.

The dark-haired ninja sighed softly upon her breast at hearing her verbal response, but he was not distracted for long, as he preferred to focus on his self-assigned task of seducing the girl and bringing her to erupt from pleasure as before. His ravished partner moaned softly and by instinct, Uriko used her teeth to just lightly graze his neck, inwardly submitting to her feline natural urge to gnaw at him when experiencing powerful emotions and his eyes opened a bit wider in response to the rather pleasant feeling. His mouth continued its venture, exploring the twin mounds of her chest, while his free hand now moved to her collarbone, his skillful fingers running up and down along her collarbone to her shoulder, drawing an audible moan of bliss from her lips. A bit of an amorous shiver ran through her body as the carnal sensations escalated slowly, a sharp reminder of the pleasantries the girl had experienced before; she was captivated by the young man that was touching her with such tender consideration.

She wondered just how far Kenji intended to go as the intensity inside her body increased just then… his lean digits ravished inside her anxiously, increasing the pace of the duo, while he allowed his thumb to now run along her clit with a consistently-rapid pace. Feeling rather lightheaded with passion, he broke away from the soft mound of her chest and pressed his lips to hers once more in a fiery kiss, pressing his muscular form against her more fully; she was almost like a drug to his senses at the moment and had utterly intoxicated him. Squeaking softly in surprise, Uriko was just a tad taken back by his force, not expecting that sudden action since her partner had just been teasing her nipples so intensely before, but when the girl gathered her thoughts together, she responded to his kiss, almost just as fervently. His intense rubbing motions were bringing her higher, making heat rise within the still-innocent youth as a powerful explosion lingered about, threatening to soon wrack her body, and she was growing dizzy with the sharp increase of ardent sensations tingling at her nerves.

His tongue passed beyond his lips and effectively lashed about hungrily within her mouth, eager to fulfill his unfamiliar desires; it barely registered that she was responding to the kiss, but Kenji spared little thought in that moment, only allowing himself to feel. His wandering hand moved just then, solely on instinct, to caress her cheek affectionately, while his fingers worked inside of her feverishly, two moving in and out of her, his thumb unknowingly pressed over the small button which would allow her to reach her release. When the climax struck her body fully, Uriko could tell that it was different, stronger this time, and felt far better than the pleasuring release that the ninja had given her in their previous embrace, and unable to hold it back, she moaned loudly into his mouth upon reaching her peak. Though she did manage to consciously resist the urge to bite his tongue, the youth still shivered from the aftereffects of the eruption, her slender form instinctively pressing closer to him, seeking comfort while also desiring a partner to share such delicious feelings with.

The perceptive young man understood quickly what had transpired, and so he slowed the movement of his hand within her most delicate area to a full stop, and he tentatively slid his fingers out of her, while breaking the kiss as well, realizing that if it was the same as before, she would be quite breathless. He did not want to ruin the feeling this time, and allowed her body to tremble in quivering submission as he merely stared at her through his light amber eyes, which focused upon her intently to detect any change in her expression. Her eyes had been closed for quite some time during their heated embrace, and now that his hand had withdrawn from her pleasured, rather wet entrance, the twin lids slowly slid up to reveal large ebony pupils alit with the flame of desire. Uriko stared forward at the person standing before her, and as the zealous emotions were veiled within her dark pools, she shyly ducked her head just then, as if trying to hide her naked feelings from his unusually-keen perception.

His eyes were still full of unquenched passion as his body raged with the need for sexual release, but the ninja was certainly in control of his primitive urges as he whispered softly, "Was it better this time, my precious little kitten…?"

Tongue-tied for once in a rare while, the girl was only able to nod slightly in response, and then she timidly averted her eyes about her surroundings, feeling a bit embarrassed for allowing her emotions to be expressed so blatantly.

A low chuckle escaped him at her touching display of innocence, and then Kenji pecked her lips gently, gliding his mouth across her smooth cheek before he murmured silkily into her ear, "This has not yet concluded… there is still more to come."

Her head perked up in curiosity as she turned back to glance at her partner out of the corner of her eye; Uriko received his light kiss without any resistance, but a faint alarm sounded in the back of her head at his words, warning the girl of what passion led to, and how it was concluded. "H-huh…? What… what more is there than this?" _Is Kenji talking about…?_

"I will gladly show you… and do not make this difficult." The young ninja cautioned her and again brushed a ghostly-whisper of a kiss across her lips, an eager glimmer shining within his eyes at the consummation that was sure to come, without interruption this time, an experience he eagerly wished to explore. His arms dipped into the water and grasped under her thighs firmly, meaning to heft the girl up just a bit against the tree, carefully positioning himself underneath her, beginning to lower his captive partner down toward the head of his shaft. His movement instantly warned the startled brunette and made her guard go back up as fear filled her dark brown eyes; she shot her own hands out to Kenji and grasped his sturdy arms in a frantic effort to try prying them away from her thighs. A deep, visible frown marred his brows in irritation that she would actually still resist him after he had spent so much time and effort pleasuring her body at her whim, and in fact, he tightened his already-firm and unyielding grip.

Realizing that the intent young man was not going to stop this time no matter how hard or long she protested, Uriko did the only thing she could in such short notice with danger hovering so closely around her; she morphed, fully and explosively, the force of her sudden transformation hitting Kenji hard. He was swiftly tossed away from the strong push of energy, and his body glided along the surface of the water from the force for a few moments before he finally submerged into the lake, his mouth closing just in time to avoid getting suffocated. Meanwhile, Uriko was beginning to shiver within the cold wetness; although the human girl had no problem with water, her feline counterpart hated being surrounded by it and the morphed cat began to thrash wildly, out of pure instinct. The sensible, reasoning part of her brain eventually grasped reason and she quickly turned around to sink her claws into the tree behind her, slowly lifting her lightweight self up and away from the confines of the lake, leaving her erstwhile partner behind.

The aforementioned young man emerged himself a moment later, sopping wet from head to toe, and feeling very angry, as he clenched a fist at his side for a moment just to still his ire, and then he growled aloud before dashing after his captive, "Foolish cat… Do you actually believe that you will just be able to run away from me this easily?"

Detecting splashing noises in the water, the wet cat glanced back briefly, spotting an enraged adversary swiftly heading her way, and then she quickly refocused on climbing the tree, fearful of what would happen if he managed to catch her. She was being very careful, not wanting to fall back in with the irate ninja, and she managed to rise herself up to the same level as the ground just as Kenji was approaching her from behind, thankfully too far below to grasp her from where he currently stood. Snarling his frustration at her evasion, the cobalt-haired ninja grasped onto the tree and began to arise after the morphed girl, a fire of fury free to be seen in his eyes, moreso when he watched as she threw her body up and over the edge in a heavily-effort heave and landed with a soft thud. The cat zoanthrope rolled across the grass for a bit until she was on her side, and then she quickly rose to a stance, immediately darting to hide behind the surrounding trees as she awaited the dreaded emergence of her livid opponent.

Kenji was at her same former spot only a moment later, his eyes eagerly darting around the dark setting for the fleeing body of the lithe girl even as he hissed threatening, "Come out, little kitten… There is nowhere you can hide from me here. The layout of this forest is well-embedded within my memory."

Uttering naught a peep, she furtively glanced around the bend of her current tree, sneaking a peek at the angrily stalking ninja, forcing herself not to stare at his naked body and instead focused on the fact that he was currently direly ticked off at her, and would most likely react in a violent manner. Indeed, his eyes were focused and dangerous despite his current irritation, as he knew he had to be level-headed and look for any minute detail to give the girl away; he slowly stalked about the area with his senses keen, much like a lion on the hunt. Noticing his newly-adapted mode, Uriko gulped nervously, suddenly feeling helpless hiding from such a powerful ire, and although she had never seen Kenji display hard attributes of his assassin nature, she presumed that this was one of them. The cat girl consciously forced herself to remain still and calm even despite the growing fear inside, and the volume of her breathing increased just slightly when thoughts of her possible punishment flickered briefly through her frightened mind.

"..." His attention suddenly turned towards her direction, believing he just heard a slight noise, and while the attentive ninja had come closer to her crouched and hiding position, he was only off on her location a little bit. "Little girl… you are truly beginning to aggravate my nerves."

"…mew…" Her eyes widened upon emitting that instinctive noise and she cursed herself inwardly, but then sought to remedy the situation by quickly picking up a rock and throwing it toward her pursuer as a hopeful distraction. The second the projectile left her paw, the feline sprinted away and ducked behind another tree a few feet away; thankfully for her, the rock had the desired effect in distracting him and throwing off his idea of her true location. A moment later, Uriko tentatively poked her head out slightly again to glance avidly at the ninja, with her body rigid in an effort to stay hidden, but unfortunately, the night breeze blowing by wet fur was beginning to make her cold. She started shivering uncontrollably while the cat in her was pestering restlessly for warmth, and she fought to still her form when Kenji once again began wandering aimlessly about the area, listening carefully, and visibly getting more angered with each passing second.

The shrouded feline zoanthrope submitted to a human reaction to feeling uncomfortable with cold and sneezed, and although it was a small sound, that was more than enough to draw attention from a stalker that had just one desire – to find her. Indeed, the keen young assassin paused in his step upon her utterance of that noise, and after craning his head toward her direction, he slowly strolled over to the tree that she was positioned behind, and once he was close enough, he felt quite certain of being in her vicinity. With a cruel smirk creasing his lips, Kenji suddenly rocketed forward, intending to overtake his captive, and while the two were rather closely matched in speed – hers being slightly better when put to use with effective moves – his dash was definitely faster. Uriko realized all too late that the ninja was coming for her, and when she tried to turn and attempted to flee, he leapt to tackle her and easily overtook the girl; she fell to the floor on her back with a weak mew of fear as he sat stiffly atop her form.

Once his hold upon her was secure, Kenji coldly glared down at his fragile opponent through icy, yet triumphant eyes; his words spat forth with frigidly heated indignation, "So, you find it fair to flaunt your body and absorb any pleasure that I granted you… but in return, you flee and scorn my own desires. It may surprise you to know that I do not appreciate such an attitude after my… efforts."

"..." the wet and shivering cat only released a slight noise of discomfort in response, and then she turned her head to the side, unwilling to look him in the eyes, her own pair glowing red with ferocity at her helpless position.

A dangerous growl emitted from him at her defiance and the ninja jostled her purposefully in vie of her attention. "You would do well not to test me, cat, unless you wish to experience what happens to those who truly garner my ire…"

"…Meow." She was silently grateful that her beast form prevented her from speaking, but nevertheless, the young feline reluctantly pivoted to return the intense gaze of her captor, though unsure of the point he was trying to make in this particular encounter.

He watched her for several long moments before he continued, "You escaped my advance this time, so to commend your efforts… I will not pursue you any further this night. But… mark my words here and now, Uriko Nonomura – this encounter between us tonight will not be the last."

Uriko hissed hotly at his claim and shook her head, silently denying his vow in insistence that such an intimate embrace would never occur again; it made her livid that he would assume an inane thing like her just easily giving up her innocence to some stranger she had met scarcely two weeks ago…

A small grin of arrogant confidence lit his face; he was not the least bit deterred by her defiance. "You believe me to be lying? Even though you were not resisting my advances just a few minutes ago…?"

"Mrrrrowl…" Still retaining her beast form, she was unable to answer verbally and just shook her head again in refusal to ever allow the young man to trespass that far into her sanctuary, but her eyes did indeed look away shamefully, despite the steadfast resistance in them.

"…I do not speak feline, cat. Revert to your human form."

_Like you really care what I say…!_ Uriko thought sassily in her mind, and then she simply responded by hissing at him again, this time baring the small pointed teeth of her beast counterpart, effectively disobeying his command.

"Do it this instant." Kenji demanded acidly as he jutted an elbow mere inches away from her delicate throat to force the girl into submission, easily able to make good on his threat should she dare to defy him once more. "Or I will make you gag on your hisses."

She cursed the domineering assassin in her mind, feeling aggravated that he had her in such a vulnerable position, but she grudgingly consented and reversed the effects, her fur and feline features melting into skin as she gradually reverted back into her human form.

His gaze was still intently filled with fiery indignation, but to his word, he retracted his arm. "Much better…"

"…maybe for you…" The young brunette croaked out hoarsely; she could breathe a little easier now and felt relieved that the threat had been removed, but she was very aware of his excitement still present and pressing against her thigh, making her extremely nervous.

"Oh, you cannot deny that you enjoyed our little tryst, kitten… Or is your memory that short?"

"Yup, I'm just that stupid, I'm a stupid little girl, remember?" Uriko retorted cattily, her voice trembling a bit in fear, but since she was unsure of another way to get over her timidity, she resorted to using her anger as a weapon, ineffective as it might be.

"Hah, but of course you are," Kenji readily agreed with malicious delight, "Then I shall remind you that you had the chance to stop me at any time, but you hardly resisted until a few minutes ago…"

Suddenly angered by, but ashamed of that memory, she exclaimed hotly, "H-hey! You're the one who tricked me! You never said you were gonna go that far!!"

His eyes glared at her with contempt, his face visibly irritated by the absurd accusation. "Hrmp, so you will give up all but the consummation of the act without a fight? Where would you expect it to end, foolish girl?"

"I… I never wanted to give anything up… y-you just took me by surprise…" she explained weakly, almost faltering at the feeble words, "H-hey, you even said so yourself that this was new… Why isn't it okay for me to try it out when it's okay for you, huh, Kenji?"

"Nothing, so long as you do not intend to make certain important aspects off-limits after you have already started it," he scolded her in a slight growl. "I gave you your pleasure, and yet I received a refutation in return… You know, I feel deprived, truly… almost wounded."

The young brunette bit her lip at his tone; did he actually sound hurt, or was that just her imagination working overtime? "But I… I didn't mean for it to go so far… I-I guess you don't care about your virginity, but I sure care about mine!"

He chuckled cruelly. "Based on our encounters thus far, I must admit that I hardly believe that. Just as I had initially presumed, you are nothing more than an insignificant little seductress… a shameless tease."

Uriko visibly flinched at the labels that he had pegged her with, fearing the validity in them, but she stubbornly replied, "I-I am not! I didn't do anything! Y-you're the one that always comes after me, remember? Not that I understand why… You make it sound like… like there're lots of other girls that you can easily have, but you chose me. Why… why do you want me…?"

Kenji smirked at her display of willful strength, just a tad amused with her antics, and he decided to grant her a vague response, "You are unique, girl… I will permit you that aspect. Your mouth is despicably wide and your brain is exceedingly small… but nonetheless, you have a certain spark within you that intrigues me, just a little."

Her eyes flared with anger at his comment degrading her intelligence, but the pinned girl knew that she was in no position to lash out at him physically, so instead she just yelled fiercely, "Get your stinking, rotten, filthy body off of me!"

In complete disregard of her unease, the domineering ninja simply pressed his cool, naked body against hers more prominently. "And what will you do if I refuse, little kitten?"

_Ack! It's still there! His…!_ She squeaked inwardly at the firm feel of his form insistently atop hers, while she was mentally intimidated by the power of his arousal still present next to her thigh; if he tried to force her now, she was unsure whether or not she could stop him. "I-I'll morph again and… and knock you away just like I did in the lake!"

"Ensue that action, and I assure you that I will make you regret your decision when I come out and find you again." His expression was a dark mask of intense malice, not even bothering to veil the threat clearly evident in his low voice. "Face the truth, girl; there is absolutely nothing to prevent me from taking you right here and now. I will spare you tonight because you eluded me, but I advise you not to run your mouth, lest you prefer to press your luck."

Uriko was stunned into fearful silence by his earnest statement. She hated to admit it, but he was right about his current advantage over her… and yet, despite this knowledge greatly scaring her, she grumbled in a mildly sarcastic tone, "Oh gosh, you're so kind to reward me, Kenji. Can you please continue being so nice and get the heck off of me now?"

Annoyance lit his light amber eyes at her continued persistence of insolence, but the ninja surprisingly relented to her request and arose from his seated position, shooting down a cold glare as he watched her squirming about the ground.

The ashamed girl gradually ascended, supporting her upper body by strength of her arms, and she kept her face turned to the side the entire time as she shivered involuntarily, murmuring quietly to herself, "This is so embarrassing… I can't wait to get out of here before I freeze to death…"

"I would volunteer to bring you warmth, but you might take offense to that." Kenji glowered in his influence over her, and then he turned away from her to face the direction of his clothing that he had left behind near the tree in the distance. "Cease your childish whining, little kitten. We will return to the cottage as soon as you find the strenuous strength to stand. Hmm, interesting how the cold weather did not seem to bother you when you were in my arms…"

Uriko bristled from his taunt. "Stop that! I swear; I hate you almost as much as I hate those ZLF scum! I'll be so happy when I bash your face in the ground and tell my sister and my friends to come here and beat you up!"

"Hah, those are merely your pathetic dreams and nothing more, little girl," he countered calmly and then laughed, a sound that she rarely heard, but this one was tainted with ill-conceived confidence; he felt even more smug when he noticed that she visibly cringed at his cruelness.

Moments later, as the two walked back toward the secluded cottage in mutual silence, the young brunette purposely kept her distance from her captor, and all the while, she inwardly prayed for the inner strength she needed to resist his advances, just in case he tried to beguile her again in the future…


	35. Discussion On Sentiments

_As usual, much appreciation and props to Andrew Glasco for his steadfast support and contribution to this chapter; the latter scene is dedicated to him._

**Chapter 35**

**Discussion On Sentiments**

The hours of the night passed by slowly, and slipping into day once again, a yawning and groggy Uriko was just finishing her breakfast at the noon hour in an empty room, and after eating, she set the bowl into the sink as usual, and allowed water to soak up the contents inside, intending to wash it later. Eliciting a soft sigh, the girl glanced around the quiet vicinity and silently wondered where Kenji had gone to, for even though she had admittedly overslept, he usually stayed in the cottage until she left first, as if he wanted to watch her departure before he dared to disappear off somewhere. Still lethargic, the young female zoanthrope rubbed her eyes sleepily, and shook her head to dust off the lingering dreams that had disturbed her from sleeping peacefully the night before, as memories of the lake taunted her mind. An inner voice claimed her immoral and loose, a teasing harlot, like the one that the ninja had charged her of being at the end of their encounter, and she could barely manage to drift into restless, uneasy slumber while lying right next to her stinging accuser.

The fact that the events occurring the night before had affected her sleep so much brought her great discomfort, and she knew that she had to try and clear the air, and if he allowed her, to explain her reasons for stopping him from committing to the final act. Even though she disliked his views and much of his sharp personality, the brunette youth unfortunately had no choice but to live with Kenji for at least the next few days, so this dangerous tension between them had to be decreased, even if just slightly. With that thought in mind, the tentative feline made sure her attire was appropriate and modest – on an impulsive decision, she had decided to put on her favorite fighting outfit resembling a gift from her Master Long three years ago, a white and blue Chinese outfit that she adored wearing, and had several pairs at home. She brought one along for her school trip simply because she liked having it close by, a reminder of her fighting past, but now, perhaps it could lend her strength in this dilemma with the lethal ninja, and so determined not to let him unnerve her, Uriko opened the door to the cottage and stepped outside.

Unbeknownst to her, the young assassin was rather close by, perched upon a high branch a short distance from the cottage, his light amber eyes closed as he tried to concentrate solely on his balance, but despite his unfaltering balance, his mind began to wander. The intimate encounter of the previous night caused an almost pleasant smile to play about his lips, and yet, when he thought about how the events had concluded, his expression gave way to aggravation while his mouth twisted into a scowl of anger. Kenji was unable to deny how much he enjoyed being in the heated embrace with his attractive young captive, and that if given the chance, he would certainly engage in one again, but judging by her recent reaction, he knew her consent to be a difficult achievement. He remained stationary in the tall tree until he heard an unnatural rustling a short distance away; his eyelids creaked open and when he looked down, he quickly spotted Uriko with a brief flicker of ire, and then he faintly recalled how similar to their first encounter this positioning seemed.

_Um… where is he? _The searching girl scratched her head a bit in confusion as she wondered just where to look for him and strolled toward the forest in an aimless wander; since he was very elusive, she doubted that the stealthy ninja could be found unless he himself wanted to be located.

Mildly amused by her ineffective antics, Kenji stalked her from above for a short time, and judging by her erratic path, he soon knew she could only be looking for something or someone, and so with this in mind, he dropped behind her from seemingly out of nowhere. "What are you searching for? Did you lose something?"

"Ack!" Startled, the surprised girl jumped a little and immediately whirled around as her widened eyes searched for the source of the noise, but upon identifying that the newcomer was Kenji, she relaxed a tad, although unease still clung to her tense muscles at the sight of the cool and reserved assassin. "Oh, no, it's not that… Actually, I… um, I was looking for you."

"…You were seeking my presence?" He was rather intrigued at her sudden forward gesture, but nevertheless, the young man carefully maintained a stoic expression and folded his arms loosely as he turned his head to the side slightly, feigning disinterest. "What do you want from me?"

"Well…" she started in a soft murmur, and glanced away sheepishly, rather embarrassed to meet his eyes at the current moment, "I-I think we should talk, Kenji…"

"I believe we are already doing that, would you not agree?" In spite of his sharp, sarcastic reply, his curiosity had been provoked, and a small light of interest lingered in his eyes, although he made sure to prevent her from seeing him in that manner, even just the slightest exposure. "Now, what is it that you wish to discuss?"

"Hrmp…" Uriko scoffed a bit at his mocking remark, but then she mentally calmed herself down after a sobering glance at his rigid profile, clearly identifying his quiet intensity; at least she had his attention, even though he still felt the need to condescend her. "I-it's about last night… We, um, kinda left some things unsaid…"

"..." He was silent for a few moments, mildly startled by her desire to revisit such unpleasant events, but finally, he answered her candidly with a cold sneer, "Hmm, did we? As I recall, it seemed to me we were both fairly clear with our respective viewpoints."

She quirked an eyebrow in curiosity at his claim; "…You really think so? How? I don't think things ended that well, so it means we ought to do something to make everything okay between us…"

Kenji eyed her evenly, not disagreeing with the suggestion, but skeptical of how to actually go about doing so, as their relationship was already shaky and somewhat volatile, to say the least, and fuel could be all too easily added to the arduous flames. "And what would you propose we do?"

The brunette youth blinked a couple of times at his reasonable question, truly unsure herself, despite her bold words and being the one to initiate their present conversation in the first place. "I-I don't know… but that's why we should talk about it, right? I mean, we shouldn't be so mad at each other like this…"

His carefully-controlled expression revealed slight exasperation as the young ninja discreetly glanced her way to pique her response of his apparent disinterest in the topic. "…Then what is there to say? It is one instance to have a problem, but to attain a solution is an entirely different situation."

"Hey, at least I'm trying… you're the one being mean and cold." She frowned a little and placed her hands on her hips, a silent portrayal of her current state of annoyance, albeit confused as she thought that surely, he would want to clear the air between them as well, not worsen their current state of conflict.

He shrugged aimlessly, unfazed by her accusation of his indifference. "I am merely stating the facts. If you have a suggestion on something that can be done, inform me; if not, then there is truly no point in having this conversation."

In her mind, Uriko grudgingly admitted to some truth in his statement, and so suddenly feeling abashed, her composure wavered a little to show uncertainty and timidity; her voice had dipped to quite a low volume as she admitted softly, "Well… I-I guess… I guess I just really wanted tell you that I'm sorry for yesterday…"

Her apology certainly surprised the ninja, seeing as his captive had been so direly adamant in resisting him, and he was unable to hide it from showing on his face as he turned to fully face her and inquired with a hint of skepticism, "You are sorry? …Why is that?"

The timid girl blushed slightly and ducked her head as she confessed, "Um, well… I'm sorry for starting something that I couldn't finish. I mean… I-I kinda liked what you were doing… but I just couldn't go all the way. I really couldn't… Can you understand?"

"…Solely based upon the possibility of pregnancy, yes. Otherwise, I can find no other reason." His reply sounded conceited and heartless, but given his limited experience in the area, Kenji was solely acknowledged of the biological aspects of intercourse, and could not consider the emotional relations of the ever-remarkable first time.

She huffed an irritated noise at his callous answer, visibly annoyed that he was this cold and careless about his sexual relations; she mused that if he treated all women in the same manner, then it was not too surprising that he had never been to bed with one before. "Well, for your information, Mr. Know-It-All, I don't have to worry about that… But geez, that's not the reason why I couldn't… I mean, I'm not just gonna give my virginity away to the first guy who… touches me like that. I don't know what kinda girls you've been around, but I'm not that loose and careless with my body, Kenji."

He shot her an inquisitive glance; could she actually be implying that he was that way with his own body, as if he would crawl along and lie beside just any harlot and give himself to her without having regards to where his partner came from or her person? _How dare she accuse me of weakly submitting to such primitive urges…_ The ninja bit off that aggravated thought and growled aloud, "You truly have some nerve accusing me of such activity after all your talk of virtue and restraint, Uriko. I should have you know that I do not treat my body in that disrespectful manner; however, I feel that virginity is a sentimental ideal, and nothing more. I, myself, am a virgin, but that aspect in itself is of little significance to me. If I wish to engage in intercourse, I certainly will not hesitate on the account of my virginity."

"Wow, you're so cold…" Uriko released a small gasp of shock at his blunt, unsympathetic tone, and then feeling the need to explain herself, she pressed onward, "I mean, gosh, I can't believe that you make it sound like your virginity is useless or something… If you really wanna lose it that badly, why don't you just go out and pick up some willing girl on the streets instead of trying to… trying to seduce me…?"

At that candid, direct question, Kenji sighed in growing exasperation that she had misunderstood him once again, and his nerves were familiarly plagued by mild frustration at her failure to comprehend what he considered to be a simple concept. "…I merely remarked that the status and existence of my virginity is of insignificant importance to me, little girl, but it does not mean I am actively seeking meaningless companionship. However, should a woman intrigue me and I wish to become involved with her in such a manner, then I would not back out of the situation simply based on the reason that I happen to be a virgin."

"…That's really sad." She commented quietly after hearing his perspective on a subject that she deemed rather important, and her eyebrows furrowed a bit when a thought suddenly occurred to her, "Well… then you probably think that I'm dumb or something for wanting to stop 'cause of… that reason, even though I already explained my thoughts to you, huh?"

"I find your explanation a rather juvenile way of thinking, yes." He told her without the slightest hesitation, and as his aggravation slowly grew, he sought to further provoke her by shooting forth sharply, "But I must admit I have come to expect that from you by now, little girl. However, the intentional teasing and provocation that went along with your blatant promiscuity… that was an unwelcome surprise."

A hot flash of anger surged through her even as guilt pricked her conscience at the slightest possible validity of his statement, although he certainly had no right to once again label her as that kind of girl, and so she fired back heatedly, "Y-you dirty pervert…! How dare you say something like that! You can't use me to your convenience and… and your sick pleasures…! Grrrr… you might have gotten away with a few things before, but not anymore, no way! From now on, you'd better stay the heck away from me! I won't let you take advantage of me, or… or my body!" Her bold proclamation, though defiant and willful, sent a light blush coloring her cheeks a pale shade of pink as she took a timid step back, visibly wincing preemptively in anticipation of a biting response from the arrogant figure that stood mere feet away from her.

A long moment passed as the girl silently awaited a reply from her reserved captor, taking note of his rigid posture and feeling just a bit intimidated by the slight twitch that rippled down the lean muscles of his back after digesting the force of her words. His constant silent exterior admittedly made her nervous and inwardly she released a long sigh when he finally turned to look at her, a little less unnerved knowing that he was going to reply, but her relief was soon short-circuited. His dark midnight blue hair swayed upward as the ninja jerked involuntary and slowly took a step toward his unwilling guest, shaded eyes glaring an unholy light in her direction while a tight provocative smile creased his lips. Shamelessly and intentionally, he gave her a slow, tenacious once-over, his openly devouring gaze hungrily lingering on specific parts of her body, while lust drenched his bleak pupils, making her cringe at his display of such crude behavior.

A strange, unreadable expression played over his calm facial features as he commented slyly, "I apologize, but I am afraid I will have to correct you on that, for you have misjudged me horribly once again, young Uriko. I would never _force_ or _use_ your precious, priceless body to my will; in fact, I only take… what is offered to me freely. If one allows herself to be so willing and easily accessible, any hot-blooded young man would take full advantage of such a delicious and generous situation." Watching her intensely, the young assassin grinned wickedly as his provocative statement hung in the air, taunting her with its silky blatant words and she slowly realized his implication that he only provoked her because she had allowed and invited him to.

He had apparently struck a sensitive chord in her, and the instant that Uriko hung her head in visible shame, he felt sadistic satisfaction course through his body in knowing that he had located this plausibly weakened nerve of hers, and he would relentlessly continue to attack it if necessary. Kenji chuckled lightly in amusement as he maintained his coolness, trying to invoke a reaction from her, hoping for an opportunity, for a single chance to start an argument with her, anything that would distract her from barbing him with truths. As each day passed, he was finding it harder to resist the inner urges that she had aroused in him since the first night she intoxicated his mind with the sight of her nude slender form in the lake, especially after their shared heated embraces. He felt that his need to stay around her was slowly growing into an obsession, as whenever she slept, he wanted to rest by her side and the times she was awake, he pursued the desire to be next to her despite the fact that she had always moved away immediately.

Her head still down, the petite girl sighed mournfully and she finally turned her back and began to walk away, visibly hurt and aggravated at his arrogance on a topic that held great significance to her, and during her stroll she muttered in a low tone, "You're impossible, really… I tried to apologize and explain why I did what I did, and you just sit here and call me childish and all those other things… geez."

The perceptive ninja closed in on her position, and having heard the faint twinge of personal pain in her soft-spoken words, he reminded his captive mildly, "You were the one that asked my opinion on the matter, Uriko. Would you rather I lied to appease you?"

Her tepidity rose at his growing proximity, but nevertheless, the brunette youth slowed her pace and she grumbled grudgingly a reply under her breath, barely loud enough to be heard even as he stepped in closer to readily invade her space. "Like it matters… if you ever say anything nice to me, I'll know that you're just lying… You… you're just too bitter and black-hearted to care what I think anyway. I bet that's why you haven't been with any girls before, 'cause you're so selfish…"

His eyes narrowed to thin slits as he fought to control his rising temper, and the growing urge to physically shake some sense into her small, and seemingly hollow head. "How hypocritical you are, spouting this woe-is-me gibberish when you clearly disrespect my way of life and have no regard for my perspective, little kitten… Our ideals and mindsets are vastly different, you are unable to even begin to understand the way I think, or perhaps you have consciously refused to consider seeing situations from my viewpoint? Now, I believe that virginity is simply an empty ideal in your society that places maturity on the inhabitants, while you contend it to be some special concept that holds more significance than a mere ordinary sexual encounter. However… if you truly value the aspect so strongly that you want to persuade my opinion, then try to convince me with your supporting beliefs and evidence. Why do you feel that virginity is 'unique'?"

Uriko sighed a bit forlornly at what she considered to be a display of pure remorseful ignorance, and she rose to the challenge with determination, eager to make him see her way; a passionate fire lit up her eyes that rarely appeared before. "Well, it's… it's something that you're born with, and once you lose it, you'll never get it back… Your virginity is precious and really private, and you should only give it to someone that you care about. 'Cause, you lose a part of yourself when that happens, the child part of you that was really innocent. Sure, there are things in this world that'll eventually make a kid grow up out of innocence, but the kid shouldn't be learning bad stuff too young or anything. And your virginity is the last thing that you have of your innocence, Kenji, so once it goes away, you only know the evils of the world. Nothing is simple and you sure as heck can't just trust anyone anymore; you're really an adult now and forever, and you've just said good-bye to the person you were before… Um, dying and being reborn is the best example I can think of… Do you know what I mean?"

The young man took a few moments to consider the delusional world that his captive came from, and found himself indeed capable of comprehending why she thought this way, and so he nodded slightly in agreement, although his expression remained ever-emotionless. "Yes, I do understand your meaning; however, I find your method of thinking rather flawed and ineffectual in aiding the progression of your life. You must realize that innocence is merely a temporary phase, Uriko, and know that the longer you remain in such a state of disillusion, then the harsher reality will be when you are forced to discard the protection one day. Bask in the secure naïveté all you wish, but even you recognize that both your innocence, and your 'sacred' virginity will not last forever, and you should not attempt to cling so desperately to those transitory stages in your existence. You may appreciate and value your innocence, but do not expect to remain a virgin eternally, for if you attain an unnecessary attachment to this ideal, you will simply agonize over the loss when it is gone. The only certainty with innocence is that it will eventually leave you, no matter how hard you try to contain the aspect…"

A little taken back that he actually considered her words instead of completely disregarding them, she initially allowed a partial smile to tentatively grace her lips, but his well-articulated rebuttal made her hesitate in perturbed thought before she finally responded, "Well, I guess there's just no convincing you… So, um, anyway, what're we gonna do about us? Just forget… the whole thing ever happened?"

Darkly he wondered why had even bothered wasting his breath on such a long and drawn-out attempt to enlighten her, but outwardly Kenji just shrugged, unwilling to reveal the slight part of him that felt irked at the petite brunette for taking his thorough reprimand so lightly. "If that is the way you choose to deal with our conflict, then we will not discuss this any further. Although I truly doubt I will forget our last instance so easily…"

_Does Kenji even care about what happened, or is he just mad 'cause I didn't let him get what he wanted? Geez, I can't tell, but I guess it doesn't really matter…_ the contemplative girl mused quietly to herself, and then she piped up verbally, "Okay, then… I'm gonna go train now. Gotta shape up for our next battle, right?"

He nodded dully and shifted his eyes elsewhere in disinterest as he remarked vaguely, "That is a wise decision. You had best be at your top condition as soon as you can."

"As soon as I can, huh…?" Alerted by the underlying threat in his calm tone, she tilted her head slightly to the side and regarded him quietly while suspicion was mirrored in the twin dark depths of her eyes at his cryptic warning. "Are you trying to tell me something, Kenji?"

Instead of giving her a direct answer, the lean ninja opted to merely smirk in reply, and after a period of uneasy silence, his bewildered captive shook her head at him and slowly turned her back to begin walking away, leaving him alone with his private thoughts. He calmly watched her departure of the open clearing with mild indifference, all the while allowing his temper to cool down from having been in yet another heated disagreement; of course, he disagreed with her views, as he seemed to on just about everything she had to say, but that in itself made sense. Kenji had long since discovered her naïve, trusting, and consequently childish attribute, but he also remembered the times when she impressed him with a few of her more admirable aspects, such as the strength of her optimistic and hopeful, albeit foolish notion of escape. As he considered how adamant she was about protecting her ever-precious virtue, the young man realized that the only way he would ever be able to finish their intimate encounter was to have Uriko literally become his, and of course, he had to achieve that goal through victory.

Their final battle would begin very soon, and if it concluded to his desired outcome, then he could teach her first-hand the message that he just preached to her about detaching from the ideal of elusive innocence, and this time, he had to make sure she gave him her full attention.

His lips curled into a cruel, furtive smile at the malicious, yet ever-tempting scenario, for he would certainly enjoy every second of it should he have the delightful opportunity to personally instruct her on that important lesson. _Innocence is fleeting, Uriko… you would do well to remember that._

_-----_

"Mon amour… it's getting late. I'd prefer to accompany you."

The blonde woman hesitated at the door of the motel room upon hearing those words, and then she turned around to give her husband a most convincing smile, hoping that she could ease the strength of his usual-protective and chivalrous nature. "Alan, my darling, I'll be fine. All I plan to do is get a little information from our informant, and tell him when we're leaving, so he won't panic when he can't contact us. I'll come back as soon as we're done talking…"

After exhaling a mild sigh of defeat, the tall lion zoanthrope nodded stiffly in show of his approval, but he walked toward her and stopped mere inches away to raise his muscular arms and enfold his wife into a tight embrace.

"Be careful, dear," Alan advised her in an almost gruff tone, obviously quite worried about letting her wander around the city at such a late hour, and caring very much for the well-being of his spouse, as the secure way he held her was a sure indication.

"I will," she promised him earnestly as her calm green eyes gazed intensely into his face, and she lifted one delicate hand to gently caress his cheek in an adoring gesture, her red-painted nails lightly scratching his thin stubble of facial hair.

With the departing kiss of her beloved still lingering upon her daintily-pursed lips, Jenny Gado left the vicinity and swiftly disappeared into the shadows of the night, her nimble figure purposely concealed as she made her way toward a certain destination. The surrounding neighborhood was presumably asleep at the current late hour, and the streets were barely illuminated with weak lighting, but the lone bat zoanthrope felt no unease whatsoever as she strolled down the dim sidewalks. Her senses were actually heightened by the bleak environment, and she soon stepped into a small, darkened alley, her sharp, keen eyes immediately searching for the young man that she had planned to meet. Apparently, he had already arrived before her, and the moment he caught sight of the blonde woman, the furtive bystander quickly walked over to greet her, his face showing visible relief at being in the company of a fellow ally.

"Good evening, Mrs. Gado," the young man spoke politely to her, though with genuine warmth in his voice. "How are you tonight? Has Mr. Gado recovered yet from the extent of his injuries?"

"Hello, Agent Espionage," she replied in equal friendliness, while a small grin tugged at the corner of her lips. "Alan and I are both fine, thank you. I'll be sure to pass along your greeting to him. What about you? How have you been holding up lately?"

"Not perfectly, I'm afraid, but I'm doing all right," was his tentative answer as a twinge of conscientious guilt laced together with his words, "I just have to keep reminding myself that this is for the good of our case, and the end will justify the means."

"Yes, I know it must be difficult for you, but try to hang in there," the voluptuous blonde assured him sympathetically, "Once we get the vital information needed, we'll pull you out right away. That is, unless… if you really can't stand this role, then we could look for a replacement. The state of your mental health is more important to us."

Her companion released a shaky sigh in response, but then he shook his head firmly and proclaimed in a steady voice, "No, I want to do this. Thank you for your consideration, Mrs. Gado, but I must continue the infiltration myself. I… I want to do my part and help everyone strive toward our goal."

"I admire your bravery," Jenny informed him in honesty, "We're very grateful and appreciate all your hard work and effort. But at the same time, we don't you to push yourself too hard, so if you ever get to a point where you don't think you can keep going, leave that place as soon as you can, and come tell me immediately."

"I promise I will do so if that happens, but in the meantime, I'll just keep doing my best," he declared courageously, and then moving on to the true purpose of their meeting, he suddenly remarked, "Mrs. Gado, I've been hearing of some disruptive, terroristic activity lately that has been taking place up in Osaka…"

The buxom woman nodded in confirmation, noticeably pleased that her young ally had enough seniority in his rank to be kept up-to-date of the important events caused by the vicious drive of a certain, relentless organization. "Yes, that's the latest news we have. Would you happen to know if the group in Osaka is connected to them at all…?"

"I don't believe that they are direct allies," he mused thoughtfully, "But both groups certainly share the same values, and they seem to agree on a similar method of action."

"I see…" Jenny carefully contemplated the information. "Well, Alan and I – and possibly Alice – are planning to leave for Osaka in a few days, and assess the situation there. Hmm, we noticed that the ZLF has been pretty quiet lately… Are they planning some sort of simultaneous attack?"

The young man shook his head. "I haven't been informed of any such plans, and with all the time and preparation needed for those kinds of events, they would've notified me in advance. My participation would be required, of course…"

"Good. Maybe we'll be lucky enough that they'll law low for just a little while, until we come back to Tokyo. Long Shin and my daughter, Shina, will both remain here to handle any misdemeanors in case the ZLF does act up. Agent Espionage, if you happen to obtain any vital information while we're gone, you can report it to Shina. I'll leave my pager with her."

"All right, Mrs. Gado." The secretive agent nodded in confirmation of the new order, and then he remarked with just a twinge of regret, "Well, I should be heading back now. If I'm gone too long and my absence is discovered…"

"No, you don't have to explain. I understand." Jenny dismissed his polite, tentative exclamation by a slight wave of her hand. "I need to get going myself. My husband isn't very fond of me being out at this hour."

Her young companion grinned in understanding; just about every member in the resistance group knew how protective Alan Gado was, especially when it came to his family, in spite of his daughter's complaints about his constant worrisome nature. "Then I'll take my leave now. Have a good night, Mrs. Gado, and I wish you a safe trip to Osaka. Please give my best regards to Mr. Gado and to the Nonomura sisters as well."

"Thank you; I'll be sure to tell them. Take care of yourself while we're away." The blonde woman smiled at his considerate blessings, and then she bid him a quick farewell as both bystanders quickly left the alleyway, and they were soon covered by the thickly-woven blanket of darkness from the ebony sky overhead.

When the voluptuous former model returned to the motel room, she found her husband still awake and seated in a chair as he stubbornly waited for her arrival, but with her alluring charm and curvaceous assets, she somehow managed to coax him into bed.


	36. The Final Battle

_This battle was a long-winded scene, and so I extend my appreciation and gratitude to Andrew Glasco for his help and all that he contributed._

**Chapter 36**

**The Final ****Battle**

One cloudy afternoon, having made his decision on when the last battle was to take place, the stoic young assassin awaited the presence of his captive a mere fifty feet outside the cottage, clad in his classic yellow ninja gi with his crimson scarf billowing into the wind. Many days had passed by since he first ensnared the girl within his trap, and since then they experienced numerous events together, from both physical and mental endurances to mild pleasantries, but now, it was finally time for their final match to ensue. His intent amber eyes rested upon the door of the wooden structure as he wrung his calloused hands together in idle anticipation of the showdown that he knew would soon occur; he fought to keep his mind calm and his body relaxed to convey the strength of inner confidence. In that particular instance, he opted for a rather dramatic start to their encounter-to-be, albeit somewhat derived from the desire to gauge his opponent's reaction, and so Kenji patiently remained stationed in his position, anticipating the arrival of the feline zoanthrope.

Contrary to his body's rigid and slowly stiffening pose, his mind was fairly active and began to run rather rampantly with memories of both pleasant and distasteful situations that he and the weak captive girl had shared over the past few weeks. In his most private and contemplative states, the puzzled assassin repeatedly wondered what special trait or aspect she possessed that made him act so leniently toward her, especially considering all her expressive instances of blatant disrespect. The mere existence of their deal baffled him at times, despite the fact that he had been the one to initiate it, and if Uriko actually managed to pull off a victory against him, then his betrayal to his master would become a startling reality. Traveling down that train of thought brought a twinge of unease to Kenji, and while he had initially only desired the slender brunette for her body, he was unable to deny steadily becoming accustomed to her sweet, almost intoxicating smile…

Inside, the girl in question was relaxing upon the cot with one of her frequented books after she finished completing her early noon training; scarce an hour ago, she had woken up after a short nap and found the main room quiet and empty, as usual. Her eyes began to grow weary from the long reading period, and with a slow blink, Uriko set down the manga upon the mattress, ending the task, and then she glanced out the window to note the time, quickly deciding that she wanted to leave the cottage for the little hours left in the day. The brunette casually glanced down at her outfit, currently donning a thin yellow jacket over a white undershirt with a mid-knee length pink skirt; she reminded herself to ask Kenji when he came back later – as politely as possible, of course – if he could bring her clothes out to be laundered so that she would be able to wear something else for the rest of the week. Averting her focus on the intention to venture outside, the feline zoanthrope playfully twirled her auburn braid over her shoulder and pranced over to the door, eager to breathe in fresh air and once again stroll about the forest to her carefree whims and desires.

Once the petite youth emerged, the collected ninja was standing in plain sight; he seemed quite prepared, and even more tense and serious than normal, as his light amber eyes dashed to her form instantly, but he said naught a word, presuming that she could detect the somber mood.

Her head tilted slightly to the side in wordless wonder when Uriko noticed the older fighter poised stiffly, as well as the icy look on his face… he appeared to be concentrating very hard on an object or a thought, and after feeling just a bit anxious from his intense gaze, the Kenpo learner greeted him softly, "Um… hi, Kenji. What's going on?"

He noted her outfit with more than a mere passing glance as she came more fully into his view; however, as he was a trained ninja prepared for battle, his cravings were easily disposed of for the time being, and his face betrayed no sign of interest toward her person. The young man dismissed the formalities with a sharp glare and he informed his frail enemy, "Prepare yourself immediately."

His stern expression, accompanied by the words ringing in her mind, caused a faint alarm to go off in her head, and in a flash, the slender brunette realized what he meant, though she quietly asked to clarify, sounding surprisingly calm, "This is our… We're gonna have our last battle today, I guess?"

"That is correct." Kenji fell silent for a few moments, allowing her to fully feel the impact of the statement, and his eyes never wavered from her petite figure even as he continued to elicit smoothly, "The day has come, Uriko. I defeated you in our first battle, and you concluded the next one by somehow managing to grasp victory, but I assure you that will need to exert much more energy in our upcoming encounter. Only one of our desires will be realized at the conclusion of this fight: either the end of your imprisonment, or the beginning of your life by my hands. I doubt that I need to emphasize the severity of our match today, for I am certain you are fully aware of the stakes of this battle on both sides. Give nothing less than your best effort if you truly want to win. You once expressed sympathy toward your opponent, and I would advise against doing so in this instance, unless you intend to fail your task. Now… are you ready to sacrifice your freedom, little kitten?"

"No way," Uriko replied with heated determination as she shook her head firmly, her eyes adopting a small fire of passion, and she tensed her body in grim anticipation of the upcoming fight, steeling herself for the effort that she would have to exert. "Just watch; you're gonna lose, Kenji!"

"We will see about that." The cobalt-haired fighter retorted in a low tone while shooting her a cool glare, and he resisted the urge to smirk his disbelief as he wound his shoulder once; his lean muscles were rigid with the expectancy of a battle and his senses almost tingled in eagerness. "If you are ready, then we can begin."

Deciding not to give him a verbal answer, Uriko just submitted to an old gesture of her previous fighting days and she beckoned her foe over with one hand before quickly turning in a full circle, and upon stopping, the young fighter had her lead fist in front of her face, her other arm reared back slightly for support.

He nodded stiffly in response to her wordless action, and with a slightly smug grin teasing the corner of his lips, the ninja started the battle by instantly vanishing into a poof of his ever-deceptive technique, and he reappeared roughly ten feet away. The girl flinched from the familiar antic and she took an uneasy step back as he executed the move once more, closer still, and a moment later, Kenji was right in her face, jutting a fist up towards the underside of her chin in what he hoped to be a devastating uppercut. Although she had initially expected him to strike her from behind, Uriko was keen to her surroundings and well-aware of his intentions to use that deceptive tech in hopes of deterring her, and when he appeared before her all of a suddenly, the auburn-haired youth twisted away hastily. Maintaining her balance, she kept her body tense with an effort of alertness, and ducked down to the ground to smoothly swept one leg around in a full circle toward her opponent, kicking at his ankles as she tried to trip him.

Kenji arched his back as his uppercut continued, slicing through thin air, and he managed to backflip in reaction to her duck, anticipating her attempted attack; he landed steadily and instantly kicked down at her cheek with his shin. Not expecting the elevated evasion, she was struck smartly in the chin and stumbled back, quickly discovering that she had bit her tongue by the coppery taste of blood that suddenly slid down her throat… and so with that, the first hit of their final battle went to Kenji. Uriko shook her head in slight annoyance with herself, but in spite of the small advantage he gained early in their bout, she was determined to be the one that delivered the last blow to attain victory over him, for the sake of her cherished freedom. The avid young fighter rolled forward toward her opponent, but instead of shooting out with her fist stretched, she placed both hands on the ground and hastily launched herself in the air, twin legs poised firmly to deal a double kick to his abdomen.

The keen ninja managed to move his forearms down with a slight noise of effort and he garnered a small means of defense against her attack, but the force of the accelerated blow still toppled his balance, causing him to fall onto his back. He agilely rolled through, stopping the motion once he was in a one-knee kneel, and then he lifted his head to immediately locate his opponent once again, his amber eyes fixating upon her with dangerous concentration. Uriko landed neatly before him, a mere foot separating the two teenagers, and without hesitation, she used the short distance to her advantage, quickly launching herself into a combination attack, as she hoped to throw him off-guard with fast, continuous strikes. Starting from her feet, the Kenpo learner swept her legs up through the air, coming over the top of Kenji's head before shifting into a lower pose and sweeping one foot out after another as she completing a full circle, trying to trip him.

Though he had watched her motions intently, the sudden high kick had the desired effect of diverting his attention and thus he fell victim to the antic, collapsing onto the side; with a muttered curse, he instantly rolled away to try to escape further assault. Once he had secured a comfortable distance, the experienced fighter regarded his captive with a cool, even glare that twisted into a snarl when he spotted the pleased, almost smug smile on her face, and he silently vowed to crush her foolish impudence. Easily satisfied that at least her last hit connected, she submitted to a brief surge of overconfidence, believing that she could stand a chance against him after all, and then she immediately ran over to Kenji, her foot raised to stomp on his downed form. As Uriko neared his location, the waiting ninja swiftly whipped his feet back above his head and allowed all of his weight to shift back onto his neck and shoulders, before he suddenly lashed out forward with his legs to knock her away.

Stunned by the unexpected move, the girl was clipped in the jaw and pushed back a few feet; she fought the urge to whimper while instinctively raising one hand to clutch her injured chin, the area already having suffered from two direct hits. She caught a glimpse of the arrogance that briefly flickered over his expression and realized that he was silently taunting her, the fire and fury of his underlying power flicking out at her from the dark depths of his piercing amber eyes. Growling in irritation both at her foe and with herself, she recklessly rushed forward at the standing ninja and jumped up with her legs outstretched and flying, eager to hit him in a kick with both feet, one immediately following after the other. Kenji faintly smirked at the rash direct attack and in a rather uninspiring but effective counter, the young ninja merely side-stepped her attack, and then thrust out a strong lean leg to strike her spine as she approached the ground.

Unable to dodge that strong blow in midair, Uriko involuntarily succumbed to it, releasing a shrill cry of pain when he struck her and sent the girl reeling through the air, making her land hard on her rear end while one hand immediately shot behind to grip the aching area. "O-oww…"

Realizing the bout was merely in the very early stages, and perhaps even still in the feeling-out process, the calm young man did not capitalize on her frail injury, knowing the pain inflicted had aided him enough, and he remained tense as he allowed her to rise.

"Grrrr…" The low growl emitted was more from frustration at herself rather than directing the anger at Kenji, for she had made yet another mistake due to her careless passion, although admittedly she harbored little contentment toward him at the current moment.

The rattled girl slowly got back on her feet, her stance slightly shaky now from the fresh injury, but nevertheless, she put up a fierce front of strength, her facial features twisting into a scowl as she wordlessly confronted the ninja. Kenji acknowledged the challenge with a partial grin as he started toward her position, and when he was only a few feet away, he reared a fist back, paused, and then thrust it towards the ground, sending his energy into the earth. Although unaware of the attack's paralyzing effects, Uriko was already in motion upon detecting movement and she agilely flipping backwards to gain some distance between her and the adversary, her back still aching a bit from the previous blow. Because his technique had not connected, he straightened up and relentlessly surged into another tactic, leaping into the air and twisting his body into a full circle as he delivered a harsh roundhouse kick in her direction.

Relying on her quick reaction, the learning young fighter immediately shot her arms up, managing to cover her chest and she deflected the forceful blow, although it caused her to stagger backwards a bit awkwardly as consequence. Landing just slightly unsteadily, Kenji launched toward her after just a brief pause and whipped around with a furious backhand strike, his expression devoid of hesitation or mercy as intense concentration furrowed his twin brows. Due to her steadfast defensive pose, his arm struck her fully-exposed cheek and she stumbled back a few steps, visibly wincing from the blow, the sting a harsh reminder to what she would have to endure on a consistent basis should she lose the battle. The young brunette gritted her teeth in determination, unwilling to give into the mild pessimism trying to creep into her mind and she quickly shot forward to seize his arm, pulling him in closely while her fist dealt two rapid blows to both sides of his face.

He stumbled back a couple of steps, an angry grimace betraying his current emotions, but he rapidly charged back in with a trio of forward leaping kicks, first rising up into the air and sending the last one slicing down toward her. Uriko was able to block the initial two blows from her arms alone, but the final strike came unexpectedly over her head, so the girl toppled forward and with a hard slap from both hands, she just barely managed to save herself from landing on her face. Kenji descended to the ground right in front of her and coolly kicked at her head with considerable force, as though it was nothing more than a mere, inanimate object; the unprotected area instantly throbbed in vivid pain and tears sprang to her eyes at the newly-dealt injury. The dazed brunette cried out briefly but managed to cut it off after she weakly recomposed herself and rolled away to the side before unsteadily standing up, reluctantly using one hand to hold her head while the girl stood her ground, fire in her eyes as she snarled quite audibly, her lips peeled back in a feral gesture.

The silent, arrogant ninja eyed her momentarily with cool indifference before moving in once more, but this time, as he neared, he leapt high over her head and landed directly behind her, thrusting an elbow at the center of her back. Her senses on pin-drop alert, she immediately acknowledged his presence behind her with a slight sense of familiarity and jumped backwards several times, using her body to slam into his outstretched elbow to drive him back with each step she took. Kenji growled in aggravation at having the tables turned on him, and he simply swept her feet out from under her, his confidence cemented since she was clearly unable to see him, and he felt eager to gain an advantage on her. Easily falling prey to that attack, Uriko squealed a bit when she found herself abruptly descending to the ground on her back, but just as she landed, she shot both arms up to grab one of his legs and pulled it forward forcefully, trying to make him fall as well.

The domineering assassin crumpled forward as she had hoped, but as he landed, his hands grabbed an iron grip of her foot and wrenched the ankle to the side in a way it simply should not go, making her body twisted involuntarily along with the motion. Pain was very evident on her face as she frantically pranced away on knees and hands, gaining just a few feet of blessed distance; the injured fighter clumsily staggered to her feet, making sure to apply pressure more on her stronger side, and with a fierce cry, she rolled forward once again. This time when she arose, she initiated another combination, and relying on her fists, she quickly punched at Kenji a few times before she jumped up gingerly, trying to hit him over the head in hopes of beginning a powerful series of rapid strikes. Fortunately for Uriko, in addition to his slight disorientation from his brief trip to the ground, the force of her initial blow had stunned him enough to weak his defenses a bit so that left him open to receive her frantic punches, much to his frustrated dismay.

"HAH!" Eliciting a triumphant cry, she bent over quite far and pounded the ninja over the head in a series of furious blows, her body leaning toward him more and more with each hit, and finally, she delivered the final punch and sent Kenji smacking face-first into the ground. When his lean form flopped down to meet the dirt ground, Uriko quickly straightened up her posture and danced back a few feet away, elated to have successfully executed one of her strongest techniques, and touched by just a sliver of pride. After all, her captor had put her down on numerous occasions, and part of her was intent on proving him wrong, even if that meant using her strength and fighting skills to beat the vitality out of him; the Kenpo student only hesitated when wondering how far she would go with the physical, violent form of persuasion. On the other side of the clearing, where she had left him lying upon the earth, the young man groaned a curse under his breath as he slowly rolled to the side, and then weakly ascended into a sitting position while one hand instantly rose in reflex to clutch at his throbbing head.

Concern briefly flickered in her eyes when the younger fighter noticed a rare expression of weakness coming from the usually-arrogant figure, but she quickly killed the compassionate thought, unwilling to allow herself to be fooled into thinking that Kenji would show her the same consideration. As he had firmly informed her at the beginning of their present encounter, this was to be a fight to the end that determined if she would attain her freedom and return to her home, or forever have her life shackled in chains by a sadistic, vicious killer. Uriko shuddered to think of what she might endure under his vindictive control, and she felt fairly certain that when he was finished amusing himself with her existence, he would turn her over to his master, the creepy perverted scientist of the ZLF. That had to be avoided at all costs, and so in contrast to her usually-sympathetic side, she could not spare any mercy to her devious foe; with that in mind, the girl rushed forward at the ninja and stopped just short of his seated location to crouch as she tentatively reached out her fist.

He felt her smacks, but the weak blows had little effect on the already-dazed fighter and with a determined scowl, he managed to muster up enough strength to roll away until he was a comfortable distance to gingerly elevate to his knees, and then he steadily rose to his feet. Once she saw that her opponent was back on his feet, Uriko acted quickly and dashed forward just a little, using the momentum of her short sprint as she leapt up and shot her legs in a consecutive order, delivering multiple kicks with her feet. Because both his balance and concentration were still off, he inwardly focused on regaining his center of gravity, deeming that aspect quite important to secure an edge over the petite girl, and in response to her attack, he merely raised his arms to take the brunt of her strikes. Kenji retracted a few steps from the impact and his back slammed against a nearby tree, causing his lips to twitch in a slight grimace, but he willed himself to endure the brief burst of pain and not retaliate until he was certain he could catch her at a weak point to take advantage of the situation.

Noticing that he seemed to be slow in recovering from his ailment, Uriko quickly glanced at his face and caught the mild discomfort on his expression, which assured her that he was likely still a little dazed, and she thought this was her chance to seize victory. Just the mere possibility of attaining her freedom shot boundless energy rushing through her body and she charged forward without hesitation, making it blatantly obvious to the perceptive ninja that she intended to grab him by the way that her eyes shone so eagerly. As she neared, a smirk briefly curved his lips and then Kenji dropped intentionally, his legs maneuvering to entrap her lower body in a scissor-like vice and trip her, intending to send the girl crashing into the sturdy tree right behind him. Her movement was greatly deterred by his diversion, but she had enough sense to curl her form up into as much of a ball as she could, and so while her upper body went flying into the hard trunk, she carefully protected her head within the grasp of her arms.

Yet, the distracted brunette was unable to prevent falling to the ground, and close by her opponent; after she landed in a light thump, Uriko pushed off the hard ground with both hands as she desperately tried to roll over until she could face up again. Aware of her vulnerability, Kenji swiftly leapt next to her side until he was gazing at her back and he thrust a vicious elbow toward her now-unshielded head with careful precision, and her eyes widened when she spotted the flying elbow heading for her face. Releasing a curt yelp, the younger fighter turned to the side, allowing her cheek to receive the blunt of the blow, to which her opponent shifted up just a tad, opting to change his method of attack as he instead thrust a knee at her lower abdomen. The forceful blow made her lurch forward involuntarily as nausea and discomfort firmly lodged into her stomach, and after a pained moan, she grit her teeth in an effort to stay focused and in an instinctive motion, she weakly turned around to tighten her arm and shot it up, delivering a harsh elbow to his groin area.

"G-gah!!" The dark-haired ninja groaned aloud at the unpleasant sickening sensation that suddenly gripped his nerves, and he crumbled to his knees, rolling to the side as he held the injured area with extreme care, feeling extreme discomfort from the simple, yet devastatingly effective tactic.

A gruff cough scratched her throat on its way out as she was still feeling the effects of being struck in the sensitive area just below her stomach, and the girl took a few minutes to shakily catch her breath, her throat constricted from an inner tightening squeeze. Uriko gradually arose with some effort, all the while keeping one hand clutched at her abdomen as she unfolded her clenched body, but a slight grin of uncharacteristic callousness touched her lips when she noticed Kenji buckled over from the blow she had dealt him. The girl delicately touched her chin, and she was startled by the sting of the aching wound where her foe had struck the area not long ago;scowling at the memory, she dashed at him once again and slipped around behind his back, intending to reach across and grab him. To her advantage, he seemed to still be engrossed in the prominent pain of her previous strike that his attention was distracted from concentrating on other on-goings, and he faintly acknowledged her presence, but he could not find the strength to properly defend himself.

Without warning, Uriko abruptly lashed out one arm toward her opponent and dug it around his neck, and she secured her grasp by bending down a bit to settle into an appropriate level, careless about the position of his arms when she had her free hand pressed tightly against his throat. He made a slight choking noise and briefly thrashed his lean form against her hold, but then a reluctantly-elicited groan revealed that he was still in the midst of recovering, and so having gained the upper edge in that moment, adrenaline pumped through the young brunette's body at the prospect of victory looming ahead. Though she had struggled in the beginning of their match, she now had him tightly in her grip and literally on his knees before her; in spite of all his years of experience and proclaimed skills, Kenji was clearly _not_ infallible, as she just proved by way of their current positions. She felt fairly certain that she would win and was so caught up by her excitement that she did not even realize her body had reacted and turned her nails into feline claws, sharp points that dug into the ninja's skin rather painfully, almost to the point of drawing blood.

"Urgh…!" The searing pain below his abdominal area was downplayed slightly as he felt his air supply being cut off, and mere moments later, his irritation sparked when he found her transformed claws digging into his bare flesh by the sudden sharp and fiery cutting sensation.

Silently crowing inside, she felt surprisingly vibrant with energy, unknowing that the adrenaline had brought about the sensation, and while she was full of spirit, able to stand strong and proud as victory lingered sharply in her mind, the girl asked him in a rather harsh and uncharacteristic bark, "Do you give up, Kenji?!"

He remained silent, trying to ignore the sting of his pride from her taunting tone as his face was contorted in a mixture of pain and stubborn anger; he could not believe that the clumsy amateur had actually been able to get the upper hand on him. Kenji felt bile of disgust rising up his throat at the bitter possibility of losing to such an inexperienced and feeble girl, and he stilled his tongue from eliciting an insult as he hastily thought of a way to accept her hold, when a sudden realization came to his mind. Her claws… Uriko had apparently morphed into her beast counterpart – only partially, judging by her ability to speak and due to the fact that there was no feeling of fur against his skin, but even such a small aspect gave him every right to transform. While it was true that their deal entailed the fights carried out in human forms, she had thrown that rule to the wind of her own accord, effectively voiding that part of their agreement, so now he could transform and finish this battle once and for all on _his_ terms.

That pleasant thought in mind, his lips slowly turned up into an eerie smirk and he inwardly gathered his strength together, concentrating on bringing his power together, and then he retorted a few moments later in a strong, confident tone, "Hah, hardly…! You truly believe that I would submit to you…? My precious little kitten… we have only just begun."

Just then, a brilliant flash of light encased him and a furious outward force abruptly exploded from his body, and the brief burst of energy swiftly sliced through the air in a large, expanding circle, effectively throwing the girl a few feet away.


	37. An Evasive Victory

_As the final battle continues, I would like to once again give Andrew Glasco all the credit he deserves for his assistance in this chapter…_

**Chapter 37**

**An Evasive Victory**

The sudden explosion of an invisible force slammed into her fully, making the unsuspecting Uriko lose her grip, and she sailed aimlessly through the air across the area, only stopping when she hit a tree, and after a moment, she tumbled clumsily back down to the ground. With a groan of clear discomfort, she slowly untangled her aching limbs and scrambled onto her feet to gaze at her opponent, realizing that there could only be one reason for the wave of energy that seemed to have come out of nowhere. Part of her mind insisted that surely, he could not have transformed into his animal counterpart when he had made a distinct point to mention that each of their battles were to be fought strictly without beast abilities, but there was no other explanation for the emission of that faintly familiar burst of light. Her dark eyes stared forward at Kenji, who was standing before her, evidently having abandoned his human form for the time being, and her mouth dropped open in response as she felt aghast and astonished that he had morphed, but even moreso because she thought that he broke the rules.

"Why, you… y-you dirty cheater!" She shrieked in accusation, her expression tainted with anger while her lithe form actually shivered from the ferocity of her ire; just when she thought he had maybe a little sliver of integrity in his character, he proved her wrong. "I can't believe you actually morphed after you said it was against the rules!!"

The girl was so busy yelling at him that she seemed unfazed by the giant mole-beast poised a few feet away from her, his eerie, crimson red eyes focused upon her as he raised his razor-sharp claws meaningfully, and then pointed to her in wordless explanation.

"…Huh?" Confused by his gesture, Uriko glanced down at her own hands, and upon realizing that there were indeed little points protruding where human nails should have been, she became flustered, inwardly scolding herself for making such a stupid move, even though it was by accident.

But then again, she found this new interesting turn of events more than slightly fascinating, seeing as through the numerous times she taunted Kenji about revealing his beast form, she was surprised he had finally complied with her request, albeit unintentionally. Eager to figure out what animal counterpart he had, the curious young cat zoanthrope took a few good minutes to stare at his morphed appearance, shuddering when she spied his sharp, gleaming claws, remembering the past occasions when he hurt her with them. Quickly moving on to peer at his other features, Uriko saw that his nose was elongated and extended out a couple of inches past his face, and after a glance at his chest, broad and bulging with muscles, it was then she discovered that part of his ninja gi had burst during the transformation. The lower half of the ripped attire encircled his waist, dangling loosely while torn pieces of yellow fabric were scattered around the ground nearby his feet, which she realized had changed into what looked like the talons that resembled those of birds.

Her gaze went back up to start from the top and she noted with mild amusement that not only was his head completely bald of hair, but he also appeared to be a bit shorter in this form – by a couple of inches anyway – and she giggled upon realizing that they were closer in height now. Glowering red eyes glared her way just then, as if he knew the reason behind her sudden joviality, and she froze for a moment, feeling her breath catch in her throat at the obvious disdain on his expression, fueling the hostility that hovered between them. Her slender form tensed a bit and she silently wondered why he had yet to initiate an attack, but then the thought occurred to her that perhaps he was waiting for the healing effects to aid his body and restore his energy. Before the battle would resume, Uriko tried to guess his beast form as she mentally ran pictures of various rodent mammals in her head; her uncertainty was understandable, since she did not exactly have a degree in zoology, and the fact that he had such unbelievably large claws in proportion to his body threw her off a bit.

"Are you… are you a shrew or something…?" The slender brunette asked with some uncertain hesitation as she tilted her head to one side in wordless wonder, one small hand instinctively raised to lightly tuck underneath her chin as an emphasis of her being deep in thought. "Um… maybe some kinda mouse with overly big claws…?"

The male zoanthrope growled shrilly in annoyance, a simple indicator that she was wrong, and he masked his growing aggravation at the foolish young girl who could not even accomplish a simple task like successfully identifying his beast form.

Uriko pursed her lips in a meek, helpless gesture while she struggled to recall a few images of the small mammals that she had seen back in her high school class a couple of years ago; she learned about many different animals, but who knew all of the ones in existence? "Well… you look a little bit like a groundhog…?"

"Screech!!" He furiously whipped a claw to the side in a blur of fast frustration to show that she was wrong, once again; just like he had mocked her about on several occasions, her ignorance always stretched his patience very thin, this instance being no exception.

"Ummm… maybe…" Her eyebrows furrowed a bit in concentration, and then she quirked an eyebrow curiously as another animal came to mind to further aid her in the ambiguous guessing escapade – the girl was unaware of his steadily-rising irritation. "Hmm… a mole kinda looks like a shrew, but it stays underground a lot more, and I think its claws are bigger…"

"Shree." He nodded his oddly-shaped head in affirmation of her guess, an uncharacteristic show of patience on his part, although truthfully, he was in fact mentally formulating a strategy to defeat his naïve opponent while she wasted her time fretting over frivolous matters.

"Yay, I got it!" A smile formed over her lips at reaching the right conclusion, but then she vaguely noticed the cold, unrelenting glare in his eyes and immediately sobered up, sliding a glance at the long, deadly lengths that extended out where his fingers had once been. "So… you're a mole, huh, Kenji? That's definitely… different. I think your claws are a little _too_ big, though…"

As if to dispute that statement and show his disagreement, the morphed fighter began to slowly stalk towards her while brandishing his claws in a menacing manner, his gaze never leaving her face for additional intimidation.

"Eep!" She gasped sharply in response, feeling unable to look away from his hypnotic stare, and she shifted directions before stepping back, matching him every foot, fear evident on her expression as the girl maintained distance between them.

He secretly reveled at the small sign of her weakness, but he maintained his cool composure, merely narrowing his eyes for a brief moment… and then all at once, he broke into a full sprint, his feet blazing as they flew across the dirt floor. As the mole zoanthrope neared his opponent, he suddenly dived towards her, shooting his entire body forward in a swift motion with his claws raised and jutting right above his head, the numerous sharp points poised to jab her form. As the girl turned to run a second too late, unbidden came the realization of his impressive speed, and she had to admit that Kenji was actually faster than her – not by terribly much, seeing as she evaded him once before, when he chased her through the forest. Since he obviously possessed more strength and brutal tactics, Uriko had been counting on using her combination attacks and rapid agility to best him in the battle, but at present she could not effectively defend herself, and he slammed into her back, twin claws raking along her sides as she went sprawling to the hard ground.

"O-oww!" The young brunette cried out in pain when her chest hit the floor, the impact stealing her breath and abruptly ending her utter of pain even as anxiety alit her eyes at the sharp stinging sensation that made her skin burn from the fresh wounds.

Paying no heed to her discomfort, Kenji smoothly vaulted back onto his feet with the strength of his claws, and upon seeing that his opponent was down, he immediately leapt towards her again, this time bending his knees as he intended to drive them into her form. Having had the wind just knocked out of her, Uriko shook her head free of the slight daze and lifted herself a bit as she gasped weakly, straining to get air back into her lungs, although her averted attention happened to be a bad distraction in a critical moment. Hovering behind her, the ninja suddenly descended, crashing into her back and forcing her face to slam into the ground, though she thankfully managed to turn to the side at the last second and ended up bruising her cheek instead of breaking her nose. The uncomfortable and painful position forced a whimper of fear from the girl, and in response, a low squeal emitted from the mole beast as he leaned in closely and pressed a claw threateningly to her exposed neck, no doubt silently demanding her submission.

"Grrr…!" Feeling angry with herself for allowing the arrogant fighter to get her off-guard, she forcefully inhaled a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut tightly, ignoring the pain that shot through her lungs at that moment as she made a split second decision. Due to the inhibition of her half-beast nature, Uriko had some difficulty sustaining the form of her animal counterpart for a certain period of time – not that it was something she would tell her opponent about – but if she did not transform soon, her chances of winning the match were slim. When the female zoanthrope triggered her morphing ability, her lithe form instantly exploded with heat and light, and a wave of energy hitting the mole sitting atop her body, drawing a shrill squeal from him as he was thrown a considerable distance away from her. Shaking off the effects, Kenji slowly rose back to his feet with a low growl, blood-red irises eyeing her dangerously as he straightened himself into his usual rigid battle stance and watched his captive avidly, long claws raised before his face and ready to strike at a moment's notice.

"Mrowl…" Down on all fours, the slender feline agilely sprinted forward for a bit, gaining a little distance, and then she stood up, quickly turning around to focus crimson-turned eyes intently on the deadly adversary positioned just a few feet away. Her ears perked in expectation of sensing sound and motion, and Uriko kept her paws close to her face, anticipating an attack from him without warning, but minutes passed and he remained frozen in place, almost as if silently challenging her to make the first move. His calm exterior unnerved her slightly, and with a shrill yowl, the morphed cat suddenly dashed toward him, and just before she was about to strike Kenji, she dropped her body and fully twisted in a tight circle, her hind legs stretched out to slash at him in the ankles. The blow connected, but the mole swiftly thrust his sharp lengths into the ground before he fell, keeping his body from connecting with the ground by firming his hold, and after he was able to regain his balance, he tore his claws free and back-flipped several times, landing easily on his feet.

His gaze followed her movement as Uriko lingered hesitantly in the distance, flailing her arms in a mild defense; the keen assassin considered the girl with a great deal of thought, formulating a strategy to defeat her, but not being able to deal her any fatal blows. His expression was cool and collected when she charged forward once again, and a second before she came into contact with him, he disappeared into a cloud of misty smoke and emerged behind her, his arm reared back in preparation to strike. She turned around slightly just in time to catch sight of his long claws rushing toward her, unable to defend when he delivered a swift uppercut and knocked her straight into the air, her light form floundering helplessly as she tried to recover. Immediately leaping up in pursuit, Kenji locked her arms within his hold and flipped the cat around until she was dangling upside-down, and he kept her pressed against his form as he descended toward the ground, but before she could crash head-first, he pivoted and flung her body into the trunk of a nearby tree.

The female zoanthrope went flying and hit the hard surface with a sickening thump, the impact causing her to visibly wince and shut her eyes to absorb some of the pain, and then she fell to the dirt floor, her form folding tightly together in a reflexive motion of defense. He quickly reached her position and crouched down to her level to furiously slash his claws into her side, strips of flimsy white cloth thrown about here and there as he tore her skin, staining the deadly lengths with her blood and drawing a yowl from the injured cat. A slight smirk flickered over his facial features as Kenji retracted a few feet, graciously allowing her a little bit of time to get back up, but he scrutinized her motions carefully, making sure he had not harmed her too severely with his aggressive attacks. Admittedly, he was unused to restraining himself while fighting while in his beast form, for in the past, he had only morphed to eliminate his opponent and end the battle very quickly; but of course, he could not treat Uriko in the same exact manner.

After several long moments of needed time to recover, she arose shakily, her side stinging vividly from his fierce lashes, but she sought to act quickly before he could initiate an attack of his own, and leapt toward him to close the distance between them. When she was close enough, the nimble cat twirled around once in a small, tight circle, one foot extended to strike at his abdomen, and then she delved right into a combination attack, her body bent low as she briefly clawed at his knees before finishing by turning in a circle with one foot out after the other, trying to trip him. Kenji defended the first three blows with relative ease, but her low attacks were met with surprise, her claws digging deeply into the skin of his shins and knees before she tripped him, causing the mole to crash on the back of his head with a pained squeal. Pleased that he fell to the ground, she pounced on him briefly, her paws latched onto his talon-shaped feet before Uriko jumped back up again and carefully edged away while watching him, her arms flailing about the air in a defensive gesture.

He rolled back in a briefly defensive nature, ignoring the dull ache that thudded around his wounded areas, but once he had a moment to recover, the young assassin charged toward his opponent again, and when he neared, thrust the claws of one hand out at her abdomen with **furious** strength and momentum. The deadly points were driving toward her so suddenly that she was unable to avoid them, but her fast reflexes and upright paws at least allowed her to shoot her arms forward and she ended up digging her sharpened nails into his fur-covered wrist. Not wanting to receive such a devastating and malicious blow, Uriko struggled with the effort of withstanding his overwhelming strength to barely hold his elongated claws away from her body, and sure enough, the distance was just a few inches short of contact. Seeing that she had no means of avoiding it, Kenji merely opted to lash his other hand across her cheek, striking her with vicious force, and immediately thereafter, he jerked his trapped arm free from her defensive hold, a momentary grimace crossing his expression.

"MROWL!" She shrieked as her head snapped back in response to his claws slashing into her fur-covered cheek, and she reflexively retreated a few steps while one paw instantly elevated to press against the open wound, nurturing it in a feline gesture. A shrill hiss broke free from her lips as the cat zoanthrope grit her teeth in determination and quickly dashed in to prance up into the air, her raised paw leaving the area of comfort to lift higher as her arm arched to deliver a strong uppercut to Kenji, hoping to knock him into a more vulnerable position. But his experience from predicting her movements allowed him to defend the blow, and then he instantly retaliated by drawing one arm back, a green energy forming in his palm before he thrust it forward, the sparkling force sizzling to strike her multiple times. Hanging in mid-air, Uriko could only manage to recover into a partially-upright position, and so unable to block against his attack, the electric volts jolted her body a bit before she was sent flying backward, ascending a short period before falling down to the hard ground.

"Mew…" she uttered weakly upon landing, though with surprisingly less force than she originally thought, as the feline could still breathe rather easily, and so she wagered that the purpose of his guard tech was to get her away, rather than dealing actual detrimental damage. Recovering after a brief pause, the nimble female zoanthrope rolled up to her knees, but then suddenly crouched into a typical cat-like position while emitting noises of her animal counterpart, appearing deceptively vulnerable and open to attack. Mere seconds passed before Kenji suddenly appeared before her in a burst of misty gray smoke with his arms lashing downward at her, but this time, Uriko was prepared; her hind legs extended and she immediately pranced up into a standing position. They met in the middle, sharp claws clashing together furiously as both fighters tried to press forward and gain an edge in advantage, but neither budged and instead, they glared intensely ahead, an invisible struggle of wills, each desiring to win the battle.

Their crimson eyes locked gazes, and for a moment, they were on equal footing, glimpsing each other's steadfast determination and their own respective aspiration to emerge victorious; her freedom and his possession lingered between them.

The brief union broke a mere moment later, and the battle resumed.

A glare slanted in her direction, the mole silently eyed his opponent for a long moment, his mind actively germinating a plan to wear down the energy of the weak young half-beast, and then he began to dash towards her, sliding down into a kick when he neared. In preparation for his rapid approach, Uriko sprung high into the air and scratched out furiously with her claws, elevating slightly with each wave of her arms as she continuously slashed her foe from his waist up to his face, rising slightly above his head. She soon lost the upward momentum and started falling back to the floor, both paws hastily rushing over to cover her face and protect it from the descent, but he reacted quickly and with an angry growl, he launched forward and instantly leapt up to grab her. Kenji slipped around behind the vulnerable girl, holding her firmly about the waist, and when he reached the peak of his ascent, the ninja began to twist backwards, flipping in tight, dizzying circles several times before he slammed her head into the ground with powerful force.

"Hck…!" Her vision briefly blurred before her eyes, and that was quickly accompanied by the great pain that throbbed achingly in her head as she stumbled up to her knees, inwardly fighting to refocus her sight on her surroundings, needing to recompose herself quickly before he took advantage of her weakness.

The woozy cat zoanthrope opted for a fast retaliation to get him down so she could have a moment to breathe and hopefully recover, and she laid herself upon her side, hastily lashing out one leg to kick at his ankles and viciously break his skin with her sharp claws. Kenji disappeared right as her attack landed, leaving a few tuffs of fur in his wake, and then he emerged before her back, raising a foot to slam right into the open area; as the talons of his foot dug into her furred skin, she yowled aloud at once again having received a harsh blow. Feeling irritated with being overpowered, she blindly lashed one arm out toward him during her brief descent back down to the ground, her jagged points desperately seeking to inflict wounds, but easily detecting the oncoming attack, he back-flipped away, effectively avoiding her wayward strike. The complacent assassin took a brief moment to shoot her a cool smirk before he charged in just then, his dark eyes reflecting his confidence and belief of his firm control in the current situation, his body rigid with tension and the determination to dominate the feeble girl.

Rolling away to gain a little distance, she bounded back up to her feet and shrunk away slightly, giving off the impression that she was just going to defend whatever attack he had coming, bringing an odd smile of pleasure to appear over his expression. Uriko had managed to sneak in a few shots at him, but he felt certain that by the end of their match, he would arise from the battlefield as the victor, making the girl his to do with as he pleased and crush all her pathetic dreams of attaining her freedom. Just as he had reached her, the agile cat suddenly thrust both paws forward, slamming forcefully into his nose, making her opponent stop abruptly in his tracks, and when Kenji was still stumbling back from her hit, she launched at him with a combination attack. Her paws flew in a whirling blur of speedy punishment, claws slashing furiously at his fur-covered chest several times before she hopped up a bit and drove her leg right toward his face, her clawed foot slamming hard and straight into his exposed cheek.

He was thrashed backwards from the force of her kick, mild surprise briefly flickering in his eyes at her abrupt move while a splutter of blood trickled from his mouth when he crashed hard onto his back, and it took a few minutes for him to stumble dazedly to his feet. Relentlessly determined, Uriko dashed right at him and bent her body down low once again, her hind legs outstretched to strike at his ankles in hopes of tripping him, seeming as though she wanted Kenji to be acquainted with the ground as many times as he had forced her. His concentration wavering from her frenzied motions, he did not have the presence of mind to prevent succumbing to her attack, and the young man landed on the hard dirt floor with a restrained groan of discomfort, a reluctant show of debility on his expression. His thoughts whirled frantically in his mind as he considered the current situation: he could not defeat her using raw, brute force, and therefore, his only other option was to wear out her short-lived energy, for surely, a half-beast zoanthrope like her must have possessed such a drawback.

"Mrowl!" Immediately rising, the lightweight cat turned around rapidly and raised a foot to stomp him, intending to crush his side underneath the impact of her clawed paw, and her foot connected with a satisfying tearing noise as his blood faintly stained her fur.

A formulated plan firmly rooted within his mind, Kenji hid a smirk and slowly rolled away, keeping up the illusion that he was running away from her, when in fact he inwardly braced himself for the upcoming attack – she appeared ready to launch her strongest beast technique on him…

"Hiss!" Convinced that he was weakened enough for her to finish the battle, Uriko ran toward the rising mole and leapt hurriedly at him, her claws poised to grab hold as she planned to execute her Beast Drive, inwardly grateful that there were so many trees around, making their quarters rather small, to her advantage. She felt fairly confident that she could easily take him out of his beast form, and very likely the fight, if she successfully executed her special technique, and when her claws sank into his shoulders, the young feline cheered triumphantly in her head. Her lithe body instantly curled into a ball, trapping her opponent inside the buzzing sphere of energy, and she brought him along with her as the pair bounced about everywhere, hurtling blindly around and crashing recklessly into the surrounding trees and ground. The cat zoanthrope herself was vaguely affected by the continuous whirling, but she stayed atop the mole as they slammed into the various objects nearby, and the process lasted for several minutes before Uriko finally released the ninja by one hard, final crash to the earth.

Now reverted back to her human form, the dizzy female zoanthrope stumbled to her feet with considerable effort, and she swayed a bit as her body twirled slightly from the previous circling motions; after a still moment, she mumbled dazedly, "Whooooa…"

A few feet away from her position, Kenji thrashed upon the ground, rolling around numerous times with the direction of the momentum, gradually slowing to a stop, and in spite of all the pain, he remained motionless, purposely making the girl believe that he was unconscious.

"Yeow…" Uriko shook her head to clear out the daze, and then quickly shot her eyes toward the cobalt-haired ninja, admittedly pleased to see him lying still on the ground, although she was a little startled by the sight of his attained beast form even after she had used her Beast Drive on him. She wearily bit her lip at the discovery, but she was determined to defeat the relentless foe for the sake of her freedom, and after a few minutes of silently studying him, she straightened herself up and began to stride toward his downed body, fists clenched at her sides. The brunette youth gingerly came to a stop when she had drawn very closely to him, and with an expectant, eager expression on her face, she leaned over his seemingly-unconscious form, and peered at him curiously, vaguely checking his condition. The second she did so, his eyes suddenly shot open without warning as a flurry of energy surrounded him, and a moment later, Kenji disappeared and emerged right underneath her, delivering an uppercut that sent her into the air to fall victim to his own special beast technique.

"ARGH!" Uriko cried out in shock, unable to avoid the sudden attack as she found herself suddenly flying upward, her body flailing helplessly in vast open space, exposed and vulnerable to the approaching series of blows coming from her skilled opponent.

Now in human form, the young ninja prodigy vanished and reappeared back and forth, juggling the girl in the air as he flew around in a frenzied spiral, striking her relentlessly several times, his amber orbs locked onto her fragile figure the entire time. The short screams that burst free from her lips caused a sadistic grin to briefly flicker across his face, but nevertheless, he directed his attention and efforts to delivering sharp, forceful blows upon her body, the fierce wind aiding his quest by keeping her afloat. With one final hit clean across her forehead, Kenji materialized behind his captive and snaked his arms firmly about her waist to twist her around and slam her down into the ground, a green flow of energy sprouting from the earth in response to the impact of the landing. He gracefully descended upon his feet and instantly pivoted to gaze toward his opponent, watching as Uriko moaned weakly and crumpled to her side, soon raising both hands to delicately shield her upper body, and he mentally noted the sudden expression of weakness with great interest.

Her head pounding with dizzying pain, she coughed hard a few times and winced at the hurtful ache burning in her chest, only faintly aware of the thin trail of blood that began to leak out from the side of her mouth at the violent reaction. "Ohhh… u-ugh…"

Breathing heavily as well due to the punishment his body had received from her previous wayward bouncing, Kenji made his way toward her with deliberately slow steps, gritting his teeth as he forced himself to ignore the sting of his fresh wounds for the time being. He closed the distance between himself and his soon-to-be dominated victim, his lean form smoothly falling on top of her slender figure as he trapped her with his legs closed around her sides, and he hurriedly reached out to grasp for her throat with both hands, intent on choking her. Trapped beneath his intense power, she was bitterly reminded of how their first battle had ended, and although she had been worn too weak to fend off her foe, she stubbornly reached up and grabbed his arms, desperate to fight to the end, even though her strength threatened to succumb. Faintly, Uriko acknowledged in her mind that he was so much stronger than her, both in body and mind, and she almost felt like crying in frustration from her wasted time and effort in all the training she had endured in the past few weeks, and coming this close to winning just to…

A displeased frown deeply creased his brows at her tenacious resistance, and his light-colored eyes seemed to nearly burn holes in hers as the young man firmed his hard grip on her vulnerable area, sweat covering him from head to toe from the effort of their intense battle. "Surrender, you pathetic little amateur…"

Resentment soared heatedly through her body at his taunt as the girl recalled all the instances when she had suffered at his hand, everything that she undergone in his presence: the endless jeering of her person, his somewhat helpful, yet thoroughly condescending fighting lessons, the embraces that he forced upon her… Her voice was a meek croak as she struggled to deny his victory; "N-no-!"

Kenji growled lowly, dangerously, and then to emphasize his deadly intent, the hands that he wrapped around her slender throat grew even more rigid and uncomfortably tight, denying her breath – victory was so close that he could almost taste it, and her resistance quickly wore his patience thin.

"This match has been decided," he elicited hoarsely, his voice mildly strained from his effort to maintain control over himself as to not push her frail form over the edge into dark oblivion. "Your body is weak with all of your strength depleted, and you have nowhere to run. Now… relinquish yourself to me, Uriko Nonomura."


	38. The Winner Decided

_Special thanks and props to Andrew Glasco for his cooperation and steadfast contribution to this chapter._

**Chapter 38**

**The Winner Decided**

Starting to grow lightheaded and weak, the hold that Uriko had on the arms of her persistent opponent loosened considerably as she concentrated her efforts into saving herself, but there was no way out, and soon, searing bleakness began to cloud her vision. Unable to speak from the lack of oxygen burning her lungs, she could only gasp in small puffs of air while she fought to focus her eyes on Kenji, the misted emotions in her dark pair revealing her dying resistance, and she met his stoic expression, cold and unyielding. She screamed silently in her own mind, desperately clinging to the last bit of hope that she could win, but gradually, her dark brown orbs became dull with the knowledge of defeat and her facial features saddened all of a suddenly as her will to fight disintegrated. If she did not admit defeat aloud, then surely he would keep choking her until he knocked her out completely, and the pinned girl was unwilling to succumb to that unconscious state, lifeless to his whims and unable to fight back should he sought to take advantage of her. _B-but I… I can't get out… O-oh no, oh gosh… if I don't do something quick, he's gonna win…!_

As her efforts to struggle diminished, Kenji knew that she was barely clinging to awareness, and her body convulsed once in a reflexive motion of self-preservation, but he relentlessly persisted in the pursuit of his conquest and ignored the silent plea dancing about her features. While the esteemed assassin had generously shown her leniency in the past, this was certainly no time for him to spare his frail victim from his power, despite her obvious desperate need to free herself and live – she should be grateful that he would not kill her, he reasoned. Regardless of how he achieved it, the cobalt-haired ninja fully intended to win her in their final battle and realize his goal of having control over the hyperactive and annoyingly-optimistic girl; soon, she would jump at the sound of his voice and obey him unconditionally. However, even with his unyielding and callous thoughts, he could not bring himself to look her directly in the eyes to witness the raw pain that she would surely express, and a small sense of relief roused within him when Uriko lolled her head back and tilted the pair out of his sight.

"…It is painfully obvious that your fragile body cannot sustain awareness for very much longer. Concede now, Uriko Nonomura, unless you intend to fall swiftly into unconsciousness and leave yourself to my mercy." The dark-haired ninja purposely ignored the nails she had latched onto his wrists to try and pry them away, as he knew that he was mere moments from victory, but no satisfaction would find him until she succumbed to her fate and uttered the words that gave her life to him.

_S-sis… I-I'm so… sorry…_ Clinging to the last bit of her consciousness, she finally acknowledged that she could no longer fight him off, and so yielding to the ominous assassin, the girl managed to nod slightly, just once, and her effort to do such a simple action was evident by the strained look on her face. "Nngh…"

Kenji grinned in a rather smug fashion upon realizing that at long last, he had won – after all that happened, he finally achieved what he wanted – and with a quiet chuckle escaping him, rippling through his aching body, he released his hold on her neck and rolled aside, granting Uriko the much-needed oxygen.

When she was finally freed, the slender brunette began to violently cough out dry puffs as vivid pain lanced through her nerves at the air that all of a suddenly came rushing back into her starving lungs, strangely rendering the weakened brunette even weaker as she avidly struggled to breathe. She clutched at her raw, tenderly sore throat with her own hands in a protective manner as she steadily returned from the edge of bleak abyss, her touch far more ginger and nurturing with a purpose to comfort rather than harm as Kenji had done to her just seconds ago. A dark voice screamed her defeat inside her mind as the battered girl outwardly grimaced, her eyes watering with tears of remorse at the realization that she had lost not only their deal, but also her precious, cherished freedom; what was to become of her now that he controlled her life? In spite of his arrogant words and vast fighting experience, Uriko had truly believed that she could have defeated him in their final battle, because she _needed_ to win so badly, and **her** reason for acquiring victory was the complete opposite of his cruel, nefarious desire to own her.

His lips curled into a cruel smirk at the twinge of hopelessness tainting her vulnerable expression, and his eyes focused directly upon her face as he made his way down to one knee, ensuring that he maintained a certain level over her so she could start getting used to the demeaning position more quickly. "Well… just as I had told you, my precious little kitten, you could not defeat me, and now that our deal has been concluded, as per our agreement, you are mine. The thought of an amateur such as yourself defeating me was an impossible concept from the start, a mere figment of the fantasy that your mind conjured up in a desperate plight of hope."

Still feebly coughing a bit from the sensation of breathlessness, Uriko was unable to answer his condescending taunts, but she did curl her body up into a fetal position, turning slightly so that her back faced the triumphant ninja as she silently refused to give him any more satisfaction lording over her. The weakened girl shifted the placement of her arms to hug herself comfortingly, her fingers tightly clutching the open folds of her yellow jacket closely to her body, desperate to shield every aspect of her vulnerability from his smirking gaze, even though that was impossible due to her current status and attire. Just his mere presence made her almost quake with anxiety, but she silently forced the inner fear away and tried to remain calm, although no matter what she thought of, grasping weakly for a pleasant sensation, she could not wake up and escape the terrible nightmare. Her thoughts slipped away as her mind slowly fell numb, shutting down in a fierce effort to deny the fact that she lost to him, and now, she would no longer have control over her own life or make any decisions for herself; she had become nothing more than a puppet to be strung up by his wicked, malicious hands.

Kenji chuckled a bit louder, intentionally mocking his downed opponent as he visibly relished in the sight of her crumbling spirit that had finally disintegrated from the force and power of his influence, and he could push her sensitive nerves all he wanted to, at his leisure. "Uriko Nonomura, you can no longer hide from me, for your life belongs to me now… my precious little kitten… You have lost two of the three battles we engaged in, and so you officially belong to me, just the same as the clothes I wear upon my back."

Her face twisted into a grimace at the stinging truth of his statement, and she still had the bruises that proved his claim, but nevertheless, Uriko was stubborn in her vow to resist him and uttered so very softly, despite her uncertainty of whether or not he would hear her, "N-no, never…"

"Hah. You still do not fully understand your situation, I see… and might I emphasize that you have no choice in the matter. After all, you accepted your fate when your victory of our battle eluded your grasp, and you willingly succumbed to me."

She lied motionless for a few minutes, slowly regaining feeling in her limbs again, and once she felt composed enough, the girl slowly unraveled herself and rose up to sit on her behind, grateful for just that progress, but still plagued by anxiety and she swore that she could almost feel his light amber eyes burning into her back.

His gaze was indeed trained intensely upon her petite form, his lips twisted in a partial smile of sadistic pleasure as he continued to leisurely barb her with his sharp words, stinging in his accurate intention of further degrading his downtrodden opponent, "It was really quite elementary. You should not feel frustrated or disappointed toward a situation wherein you never had a chance of attaining your desired outcome…"

Determined to dispel her weakness – physically, at least – the sore young fighter carefully rose to her feet, making sure her back was still turned to the arrogant ninja until she felt ready to face him and his provocative remarks, but in the meantime, she muttered to him in an aggravated hiss, "Sh-shut up, you…"

He stood as well, much easier than the slender brunette, despite the pain and aches that he felt from his own injuries, but the prospect of having won their deal and proven his superiority over the loud-mouthed girl, that far outweighed his temporary discomfort. "Hah, I am in no position to obey that remark, but you… ah, yes, you are mere property now… and more specifically, you are my property, Uriko Nonomura…"

Fire lit up in her dark eyes at that spiteful, yet disturbingly truthful statement; dimly, she wondered if she would truly honor her word by their deal and turn herself over to the ninja, but in the meantime, while her pride rose high and sternly, she turned around at a normal pace and spat her words at him, "N-no, I'm not… and I'm never gonna belong to such a filthy, rotten person like you…!!"

"Deny the truth all you want, but it is fact." He wagged a finger at her in a condescending manner, as though he was scolding a rebellious child, before he smirked smoothly when she responded by shooting a glare of disdain directly at him, soon replaced by the hurt clearly evident upon her delicate facial features. The young man folded his arms over his bare chest and declared resolutely, "Due to the conditions of our deal, you are mine, dear kitten…"

Furious with him for the constant reminder, she succumbed to a sudden urge that ignited zealously deep inside her body and the girl lashed her arm out, slapping Kenji crisply and smartly across the face while she voiced in a loud shout, forcing the words out of her trembling lips, "Take your stupid deal and… and jump off a cliff with it-!!"

Before he could retaliate against her action, she instantly whirled around and fled from the scene with a choked sob of melancholy, inwardly certain that she would hear his mocking laughter chasing her, his presence never leaving no matter how far she ran. The dark-haired ninja remained in the large clearing, standing calmly as he was only mildly affected by her weakly-delivered slap, and mere moments later, a grin rose upon his expression as he chuckled quietly, openly relishing his victory and looking forward to having fun with his new precious possession. Kenji knew that the girl would deny his ownership fervently, as usual, in conjunction with her ever-stubborn nature, but his recent victory allowed him to do as he wanted to her, in spite of how she might protest, and he fully intended on keeping his word to teach her a few of life's most important lessons. He was very pleased with the outcome of the battle, as well as the conclusion of their deal, feeling that everything had gone according to his plans, and the satisfied young man did not follow Uriko right at the moment, fully aware that he could easily track her down when he wanted to bring her back.

As she was running away, the minutes flew by unnoticed to the cold-ridden girl, ice rendering her emotions useless and dead; ironically, the numerous clouds that had gathered overhead started to drop rain down upon her, adding more discomfort to the situation. She sped through the forest blindly, allowing her instincts to steer her body away from trees rather than actually using her mind, because that part of her was occupied with horrible images of a life in shackles that made her small form quake with raw, uninhibited fear. Uriko allowed burning tears of regret and humiliation to streak down her cheeks, grasping onto the small concept of humanity while she still could, because she was sure that Kenji wanted to turn her into the same kind of emotionless automation such as himself. Her wet eyes were so blurry with bleak shame and haunting defeat that she did not even notice she was quickly approaching an opening that led right out of the forest, where four guys happened to be standing by the entrance, each daring the other to partake in stupid activities to just kill time.

"Huh…?" One of the male teenagers remarked in surprise and hurriedly turned his head around after he caught a glimpse of the lithe form that suddenly came running by the small group, his eyebrows quirked in clear interest as his gaze followed her intently. "Yo, dude, check it out…"

Responding to the jostle that suddenly poked at his ribs, his friend grumbled in annoyance, but nevertheless he pivoted to look in the same direction, commenting mildly at the sight of the retreating girl, "Woah, not bad… but ya know, she looks kinda fucked up."

"You think so? Shit, who cares, she's hella hot, man," was his insistent reply after the speaker took a long peek at the aforementioned young female.

The leading thug of the quartet noticed the slender youth that had suddenly flown out from the forest just a few minutes prior, a blur to his curious eyes, and after exchanging a glance with his adjacent companion, he addressed the others in a tone of amusement, "Hey, you guys think we should pick her up or what? 'Cause that'd sure as hell be more fun than watching you idiots standing around doing nothing…"

The first guy that had initially noticed her guffawed in reply to the bold suggestion; "Hahaha! Yeah, right! You kidding, man? A girl with an ass like that, she'd shoot ya down in a second!"

"Damn, you're a fuckin' pussy. Watch this," one of his friends declared with a cocky sneer as he briefly cleared his throat, and then called out loudly into the sheet of pouring rain, "Hey there, sweetcakes! You all by yourself, girl? Why don't ya come on over here and let me show you a little something?"

Caught up in her own inner turmoil, Uriko was utterly oblivious to their presence and deaf to the calls, merely continuing to speedily dash along simply due to the sheer feeling of disillusioned freedom, only dimly realizing the irony of Kenji somewhat 'allowing' her to escape after he had just gotten the right to claim her mind and body.

The third teenager crossed his arms over his chest with a snicker of disbelief at the poor attempt and retorted in jest, "Huh, a 'little' something is right…!"

"Hey, fuck you, dickface!" he fired back immediately.

"Uh, no thanks, man! I'd rather do that girl," came the eager, albeit fiendish-sounding reply.

Their unspoken leader shook his head with slight disdain at the displayed behavior and he scolded them sharply, "Good God, you guys are fucking morons. Damn, would ya look at her go; she ain't even slowing down or anything…" his eyes narrowed a bit as he contemplated aloud, "Say, do you guys think that girl's snubbin' us or what?"

The guy standing across from him jabbed his buddy in his side, and then glowered haughtily, "See? You shouldn't have even bothered, dumbass. She wouldn't give you the time a' day."

"…Stuck-up bitch," his companion grumbled in a low scowl, "She thinks she's too good for us, eh?"

The head thug of their group focused his eyes toward the direction where the young girl had disappeared off to, while a cruel smirk grazed his lips at the thought of chasing her down and schooling some respect into that pretty little body; she should have paid more attention to her surroundings, after all. "Hmm, is that so? In that case, maybe we oughta teach that little ice princess a thing or two, boys."

"Good idea, man!" The scraggly youth next to him nodded enthusiastically in agreement, and he slapped his other like-minded friend on the shoulder, waggling his eyebrows in a rather crude and mischievous as he licked his lips in anticipation of the upcoming chase and pursuit of the lone female. "Heh, I hear it's been a while since you've, uh, done the horizontal tango, right?"

"Shut the fuck up," he snapped with a glare, clearly displeased at hearing the comment, "I just got better standards than you. Now let's go after her before she gets too far or someone'll hear. She's movin' pretty fast."

"Yeah, hurry up, guys!" His buddy agreed as the two eagerly began to dart down the same path that she had previously ran through, their eyes gleaming with wicked, perverse intent.

The leader and his remaining companion followed suit without hesitation, and the former set his sight on the fleeing image of the nameless girl's retreating back as he called back to the others, "She's a little small, but after one of our rounds, I think she'll be _plenty_ loose for the rest of the night, haha…!"

"Wouldn't be the first time, man!" The teenage boy running alongside of him reminded with a lecherous grin, dubiously referring to a different encounter that the group had engaged in prior to the present. "You know the tighter the better, heh!"

Meanwhile, one of his companions further ahead was slowly, but steadily gaining on the rain-drenched female with dogged persistence, carefully maintaining his speed as he fully intended to catch her, not even thinking of waiting for his companions to catch up. _I'm comin' for ya, girlie…!_

With the dark wetness drenching her surroundings, Uriko was understandably unable to hear any of the previously-made remarks, and she dashed forward all the more fiercely, not even caring that her outfit was becoming completely soaked, much to the delight of the punks following behind her.

"That bitch must be deaf or some shit," the leader commented to his nearby buddy with a wry smirk, evidently pleased at the girl's display of ignorance; "Hah, no matter, this is gonna be fucking great!"

His friend nodded enthusiastically in reply as adrenaline pumped rapidly through his body from the nefarious chase, and then he let out a low, shrill whistle of encouragement to his friends that again, went unnoticed by the young female drowning in mental turbulence.

The guy had been closest to her position finally decreased the distance to the point where he felt confident enough to snare the delectable victim for a night of fun with him and his friends, and so he grasped out for her arm, trying to snag a firm hold as he cried, "C'mere, girl!"

"Ahhh!" Startled by the sudden swipe brushing by her side, the distracted youth turned her head back and finally noticed the guy that was trailing closely behind her, and a worried frown marred her brows at his presence, but nevertheless, she kept running while the teenage punk continued his chase.

The heavy rain was now descending in a faster downpour, numerous wet drops pelting the top of her head with each passing second, sliding over her eyelids to cling to her spidery-thin lashes to further impair her much-needed sight, especially given the circumstances. She blinked rapidly in a reflexive motion, and that resulted in water eagerly delving right into her eyes, blurring her vision all the more, and the girl threw her head back to whip her long braid over her shoulder, frantically heaving the tresses out of her way. Slender legs dashed along the rough, pebbled ground, so eager to get away that nothing else mattered at that moment, and with the additional loudness of the snarling storm, her normally sensitive ears failed to acknowledge the figures trailing at a close distance. It was not until a hoarse voice had shouted a loud command that the young female turned to look behind her to detect the source of peculiar noise in an unlikely setting, and openly grimaced at the potentially troublesome sight that instantly greeted her eyes.

The four figures that had been standing outside of the forest that she unknowingly and unintentionally snubbed were now trailing the same path right behind her, and unfortunately, their identities and numbers were hidden by the shadows and misty weather. She could only make out several dashing forms, and was thankful for the additional speed granted by her zoanthrope counterpart, but still feared even that would not be enough to make a clean escape, considering her current weakened condition. It just figured that only Uriko herself would have the extreme unluckiness of encountering jerks so soon after she finally stole the chance of taking a sobbing, supposedly submissive moment to flee from the forest and out of the wicked ninja's grasp. Quickly wiping the tears free of her sight, the darting girl continued running toward her goal, desperate to achieve it after waiting such a long time and having to put up with so much torment that, to her dismay, Kenji apparently enjoyed and rather thoroughly.

The storm poured down heavily around all of the surroundings upon the earth below, seeming to create thick sleets of ice that blurred everything in sight, leaving only huge figures to be distinguishable from a relatively safe distance that was intended to be depleted. The lone girl rubbed her eyes again, furiously this time to grasp sight quickly as she blindly backed away, feeling her surroundings with water-soaked hands, hoping to encounter one of the thugs so that she could retaliate with a preemptive strike. She was tired of being pushed around by Kenji and his crazy schizophrenic alternate personality Bakuryu; the startling daily threats on her life, the deal constructed to wage her freedom, his unwanted yet admittedly bewildering advances, and now, even a couple of lousy, lewd punks were picking on her! Infuriating! Aside from _those_ aforementioned hassling aspects, she had lost in the deal with the ninja assassin and she was sure that soon enough, he would leave their former battleground and come looking for her to collect the prized possession he wanted to have for so long: Uriko herself.

Upon noticing the approaching clearing that was a mere fifty feet away, the leader of their small group raised a hand to address his friends that were close enough to hear him as he commanded them decisively, "Hey boys, look where that girl's going; there's a huge open space up ahead. Let's split up and take her by surprise…!"

"Yeah, man, that space's got hella trees and bushes and shit out there," one of his companions responded with excited agreement at the upcoming prospect, "Plenty of privacy to do our thing!"

"Right on, guys!" The third bystander threw in his approval of the plan, and so the remaining trio dispersed to take their prey by surprise – their last member had strayed rather far ahead in his desire to tail the girl, but the others figured that if something happened, he would be able to take care of himself.

Her legs still flying in rapid succession, the feline zoanthrope was clumsily stumbling around through the dark, guided by mere instincts, when an arm suddenly lashed out from behind her line of sight and seized a hold of her supple neck, keeping the tender area locked in a tight chokehold that refused to be relinquished. Due to her fast reflexes, the avidly improved Kenpo student was able to react instantaneously, and she heaved her weight forward, bending far over to throw the figure off of her back, panting in effort as she briefly glanced down at his fallen form. He was groaning softly from the force of the throw, but he obviously still had consciousness by the emitted noise, and so Uriko knew that she had to move fast before his other friends showed up to help him tame this apparently-wild girl; she simply refused to allow that to happen. She turned away from the pathetic overturned life and charged ahead full speed, her legs flying in a blur, splashing across numerous deep puddles that completely drenched her shoes and socks in mere seconds, although that was the least of her current concerns.

A few minutes later, she slowed to a brief stop in an open clearing, just momentarily pausing to catch her breath, and her sensitive ears detected a low, but slightly delirious chuckling noise in the air, seeming rather far away, and yet, her heart still thudded in fear and anticipation. The sound teleported very close by just then, and Uriko started to pivot so she could confront the mockery when a sharp, silver point immediately found the front of her neck, while her arms were yanked back in a secure grip, once again trapping her. The auburn-haired youth froze at the bitterly cold metal, feeling that familiar dread lodged in her throat; fighting against Kenji… or rather, that relentless assassin Bakuryu, had gotten her quite used to the unwanted position, though of course she certainly would never grow to like the vulnerability. A small whimper escaped her throat from the memory of being imprisoned in a similar case by him countless times, but she tried not to gulp hard and move too much, or she would be practically throwing herself onto the deadly object, as if she wanted to skewer her own body.

"Are you gonna change your mind and be nice to us now, Miss Ice Princess?" A gruff voice growled into her ear, and then the brunette felt a more yielding tip dig through her hair, followed by a loud, obnoxiously obvious sniff that brought a snicker that was obviously lecherous and so full of virile intent that it almost made her shudder. "Damn, girl, you smell great! Soft hair, too… wonder if you're slick like that all over, heh, heh…" A short, sneering laugh ensued, followed by a quick call, "Hey, guys! You can come out now; I got 'er nice and tight here!"

Thoughts of jabbing her assailant in the eyes with her claws lingered in her mind, but to actually twist around somehow and carry out that silent threat was not worth the possibility of her death, and so she inwardly forced her active mind to stay calm. Uriko could only use her dark pupils to glare defiantly ahead, uttering naught a peep as two other guys suddenly appeared and came over to where she was being held; upon viewing her position, they laughed simultaneously, reminding her of multiple puppets being controlled by a central string. The thugs exchanged lewd, apparently hysterically comments with one another while occasionally, her hair was stroked or her cheek was pinched but the only safe resistance she could execute was a passive turn of her head or a look of disgust on her face. The female zoanthrope cursed her overbearing captor for initiating a fight on that particular day and before this unfortunate current event, since he was responsible for reducing her to such a pathetic state in which she could not even try to defend herself by morphing into her animal form.

Never did the hopeful girl imagine that the gang was seriously intent on submitting to their perverted, debauched desires, when one thug suddenly pulled out a switchblade and without warning, sliced her top open with a hasty jerk, beginning their molestation. The buttons holding it together was forced to break free of their threads, and all fell silently to the ground as the brunette was involuntarily left exposing the majority of her chest to the vile perpetrators; she immediately responded with a visible cringe at the forced display. Hoots of approval sounded at the action, and the owners of such obnoxious noise were rewarded with silent glares from the victim as she inwardly searched for options to escape this infuriating defenseless situation, but grasped none yet at the time being. The punks in return blatantly stared back at her, still muttering amongst themselves on what to do next, although it appeared obvious that now they had gotten a glimpse at heaven, allowing her to get away was clearly not an option, which ironically just fueled her desire to escape.

"Whoa, get a load of those knockers!" A weaponless one exclaimed just as Uriko hastily turned her face away to the side at the crude remark, her skin crawling with dual anger and humiliation when she felt a hard squeeze groping her left breast and her teeth chattered a bit from being clenched together so hard. "You sure she was by herself, man? I mean, fuck, I sure as hell wouldn't leave such a hot bitch alone like that if she were my woman, ya know?"

"She was runnin' like hell outta that forest over there," a point in the said direction to accompany that information, "but I waited and didn't see anyone follow her out, so yeah, I think she's all alone, and we ain't gonna get any distractions out here, heh, heh."

"This is a good place. So, who's gonna go first?"

After that frightening remark, she began to tune out the correspondence between the boys and just concentrated on a method of eluding the horrible violation that they planned to carry through and do to her; she certainly had no intentions of giving into their sick, immoral demands. _There's no **way** I'm gonna let these perverts do anything to me-!_

Thankfully, her bra still protected her twin mounds from a full exhibitionist display, but the girl had a sinking and reasonable feeling that the last top barrier would soon be depleted if she stayed passive much longer, and wanted to act at first opportunity. Once she finished dully listening to the chatter from the punks surrounding her, Uriko acted immediately, elevating for a few seconds before stomping down hard on the pair of feet underneath hers, which shocked the arm holding the knife into jerking forward. The others barely had time to react as she dropped quickly, dashing to the side to escape danger and never looking back or waiting for a punishing reprisal as she ran furiously, once again escaping from a deadly situation, like earlier with the ninja assassin. Angry shouts pointlessly bounced off her exterior shell while the shuffling footsteps of unfulfilled desires stamped behind her, forcing the cat zoanthrope to hastily glance around for somewhere safer to go, her eyes frantic with worry and distress.

All of a sudden, a shadow appeared in front of her, just several feet away, and she had to grind her heels into a harsh stop, panting with effort not to fall onto the cold wet ground, and she also watched out for the suddenly-small distance between herself and the newcomer. A blur lashed out quickly and grabbed her soaked elbow with a firm, unyielding grip that refused to let go, one that she was quickly growing angry at falling victim to, and then forcefully pulled her forward, making Uriko fly until she hit an immobile wall of hard muscle, stunning her momentarily. Her other arm was soon grabbed as well and she struggled to be released from the twin imprisonment, helpless in her attempt, eventually driven to be aside another body burning with heat, making her tremble slightly albeit involuntarily. Rain-wetted lips briefly collided with her soft pair from the rapid movement, and for a second frozen in time, the brunette thought that the person currently holding her was the fallen pervert she had left lying in the wake of his defeated pursuit earlier.

"Uriko." Her name was hissed intimately against her mouth, the voice filled with all-too-familiar indignation and a sliver of possession as well, reminding her of the nightmare tone that continuously and thoroughly enjoyed threatening her well being from day one. _Kenji…_


	39. Her Unintended Savior

_Once again, I want to give recognition and appreciation to Andrew Glasco for his assistance in this chapter._

**Chapter 39**

**Her Unintended Savior**

The frightened fleeing girl blinked and briefly shook her head to throw aside drops of water that stubbornly clung to her thin eyelashes, and she hoped that ensued action would allow her to absolutely confirm the identity of the speaker, although she was rather unsure of truly wanting to attain that knowledge. She glanced up somewhat timidly while silently expecting an unpleasant encounter, and sure enough, her view was instantly filled with the scowling face of her dark-haired captor, his wet midnight blue bangs sticking to her forehead at their close proximity, twin deadly amber eyes glaring directly at her. Her heart skipping a beat from the initial shock, Uriko yelped aloud in surprise and frantically tried to move back away from him and his accusing stare into her soul, laying her bare to his gaze, and she hated the vulnerability that he constantly tagged onto her emotions while also, she would inwardly admit to feeling just a bit intimidated by his domineering gaze. But Kenji refused to relent to even that small desire of hers, apparently not wanting to let his victim go, and he tugged her toward his stiff form, keeping the young brunette trapped to his will; the assassin glanced down at her torn upper attire and concern briefly flickered over his expression, and then disappeared as soon as it had come.

She did not think that he cared a whit about her strange appearance, since he had rarely shown any interest toward the maintenance of her well-being in the past, and yet to her astonishment, he still inquired of her condition, albeit hesitantly with a touch of abrasiveness in his voice, "…What happened to you?"

Hating his usual commanding tone but preferring it to an awful session with the sin-intended thugs, she answered breathlessly as a shiver ran through her body at actually voicing the atrocity, "Th-thugs… ch-chasing me… o-one of them held my arms and… and another guy… h-he cut my shirt… Ugh, th-those perverts, they t-touched me…! I-I think they wanted… Th-they were going to…" She trailed off at the end, unable to finish the disdainful phrase, and after sucking in several gasps of air, the girl anxiously wrapped her arms around herself in a protective hug as she tried to discard the horrible possibility of cruel violations from her physically and mentally fatigued mind.

"..." His hazy amber eyes adopted a hellish, unholy light after hearing her words and absorbing the revealed information, and without a verbal response, Kenji abruptly released his hold on her arms, carefully pushing the girl to one side as he stalked forward with intents of harsh punishment on his agenda. Detecting high levels of hostility emitting off of his rigid form, as well as fearing the repercussions that might spawn of his present mood, Uriko hastily dashed ahead and planted herself directly in his path with her hands pushed out in hopes of preventing him from proceeding with whatever malicious plans he had in mind. The reserved killer merely ignored her protests and shoved his way past her, paying no heed to the loud shouts of protest that rushed toward his ears as he became purposefully deaf to her voice of reason that had shaken his resolve before, and he was determined to follow through with his intentions this time. Adding another indication of his dangerous intent was the long strip of scarlet scarf that flared behind over his shoulders, a thin flag clearly marked with the sign of fatality to those who had committed heinous acts and dared to enter the hazardous zone of the serpentine figure; he would show absolutely no mercy.

"K-Kenji!" The female youth called out in her final attempt of persuading him to desist, and she was unsure of what she should resort to doing in order to stop the maliciously skilled warrior from causing a torrent of bloodshed that she suspected he wanted to inflict upon the callous individuals unjustly, despite how immoral and crude they had been toward her. "_Kenji! Come back!_ What are… what are you gonna do to them…?"

Her noisy, persistent summoning received no reply whatsoever, and after a few minutes of staying back and waiting for him to return, she began to fear the worst from the silent, stalking young assassin; frantically her mind searched for an action or words that would cease whatever he planned to do, but none came up. Answers eluded her futile quest as she had only witnessed an extent of his otherwise-concealed anger, and so Uriko was helpless to follow her captor, all the while internally hoping with fierce optimism that he would not deal too much harm or damage to the unfortunate group of spontaneous scumbags. Part of her prayed that all of them were already left by now, having decided that since she had put up such a fierce resistance, she was not worth the trouble of pursuit, and perhaps they grudgingly sauntered off to find some different form of entertainment – hopefully, an ethical event this time. And yet, the other side of her mind demanded justice for their nefarious attempt to viciously steal her innocence away, and insisted on making absolute certainty that the scoundrels would be scarred in a way that they never desired to carry out the harassment of another girl that just happened to unluckily stumble upon the wrong path…

A few seconds later, sounds of wet stomping splashed toward the two from up ahead, and the figures attached to the running feet soon appeared from within the spreading mist of the rainy shower, the broad, hulking shadows seeming to loom over the younger zoanthrope youths. All four of them arrived within minutes and lined up before the pair; one, the presumed leader of the small posse by his stance, stepped forward and threw a dirty look at Kenji, silently expressing his weariness and displeasure of the additional presence while he simultaneously shifted his gaze over to the shrunken girl. The others stared at her blatantly as well, making no efforts to hide their foul, perverted desires, and they eyed the torn attire lustfully as if they could, and desperately wanted, to shred apart the wet skirt clinging to her thighs, the one remaining article of her clothing that had stayed untouched, and leave her bared to their whims. Feeling their negative energy emitting in a wave of bitter coldness, Uriko shivered inwardly at the intense gazes, thoroughly despising the unwanted attention that she was receiving, but she resisted the powerful urge to move away in fear that the simple action might initiate a fight for dominance between the male parties.

"Hey, you there," the punk boldly taking charge of the tense situation started to demand as he directed his words to the calmly-awaiting Kenji, his voice gruff and leaving no room for compromise, "Give us the pretty little lady and you can go. We don't want any shit with you, so you're free to split on outta here, but we sure as hell ain't leaving without the girl."

Wisely keeping quiet, the half-beast timidly peered at her companion and noticed a twinge of tension rippling down his back, implying his growing annoyance, and then she took note of his eerily calm expression as his fist drew behind him, silently gathering his ally of power close together in expectation of a physical event to take place.

"And what will you do if I refuse…?" he inquired silkily with a slight smirk on his face, clearly taunting his would-be-challengers.

"Then no hard feelings, man, but we're gonna fuckin' bust you up." This crude threat was proclaimed rather matter-of-factly, accompanied with a careless shrug as the three heads of his other friends bobbed simultaneously in support, and then evil smiles crossed their face at the possibility of beating up such a foolish figure who dared to interfere in their perverse plans.

Unfazed by the remark of violence due to the dark nature of his occupation, a wicked, almost gleeful grin suddenly creased Kenji's lips at that moment, which made his bravely-vocal opponent take a small step back while he gripped his weapon tightly, the blade glistening faintly from the raindrops splayed upon it. "Hah, hah… Your intention is foolish, but your ability to pull off false bravado doubtlessly would have been admirable… that is, had you not shown fear and uncertainty in your own statement at the last second."

"Hey! You callin' me a yellow belly or somethin', asshole?" came the vulgar retort as a clenched fist quickly rose into the air, and a thin, silver surfaced trembled with the intent of harm, silently issuing a physical response and confrontation to the outright insult.

The cobalt-haired predator laughed lowly, utter confidence in his stance, and his voice tingled with cold cruelty as he further instigated, "I congratulate you on achieving partial intelligence on short notice, but unfortunately for you, such limited resources will not bring you significant assistance in maintaining your existence. Before we engage in a fight, I shall be generous and allow you to finish speaking the last words of your pitifully wasted life."

"That's it, you're fuckin' dead! Let's get 'im, guys!" One of the robust youths cried out to his companions, and numerous shouts of approval rang through the air as each crouched into their respective pose of defense, seemingly ready to partake in battle with an opponent that was far more experienced, though unfortunately for them, they did not know this.

He chuckled humorlessly, as he was rather amused by the pathetic show of false bravado, and in response to their initiation, his wrists flashed a moment later in a dim flicker of light, and unseen by their eyes, his hands had been replaced by sharp claws that were eager to skewer and maim. "Foolish imbeciles… how easily you throw your lives away."

"Haaaugh!" Reckless as he was, the spontaneous attacker missed the sight of the mild transformation and simply charged forward with a hoarse cry, his dark eyes gleaming in malicious glee and enthusiasm, while he poised one tightly-clenched fist to come down over the head of his cool and calm opponent.

Easily detecting the motion, the agile ninja leapt up into the air effortlessly to avoid the blow, and then after a brief ascension, he slid a casual glance at the scattered thugs before he rapidly rushed back downward with his form directed toward a specific attacker to deliver his retaliation.

_"Pathetic __**humans**__, trying to take __my__ possession…"_

Silver points slashed swiftly through the vast open space, intending to strike weak, pliable skin, and quickly found it, slicing past the yielding surface to draw thin lines that showed pain with the bleeding redness, the newly-stained tips already thirsting for more of the same cruel treatment. Though the body attached to the self-acclaimed 'weapons' resembled that of a human, it was clearly evident that the too-large hands were somewhat mutated, having donned a much more dangerous form that could easily inflict grueling pain amongst the adversaries at the owner's discretion. The vile assault-intended teenager was struck easily and fell back, unable to resist the momentum of the blow; he brought up his hands in clumsy defense, though that obviously came too late for him to make effective use of that save, as his neck was soon viciously ripped, effectively ending his life. Dark blood splurged from the deep wound in a hot flow of thick liquid, and hoarse, gagging noises were elicited into the air, barely able to be heard due to the harsh weather causing such cacophony, and then the figure fell limply to the floor mere minutes later, completely void of any movement.

_"Hear this, Uriko… You are mine!"_

The hissed words of fierce, passionate possession were fiercely emphasized with an angry, sharp thrust of wicked claws into the abdomen of another different thug, and then the arm was swiftly retracted to inflict even more brutal, severe pain, emphasized by a harsh bark of laughter. Thin slimy objects clung to the end of the ivory daggers, presumed to be formerly located within in the body of the present prey, and as the items were removed for pure sadistic joy, they fell down to the wet ground with a sickening slop, stained entirely dark red from the vital fluid of one's life essence. His mouth falling open, the unfortunate victim could not even manage to emit a mere cry of distress as he rasped out what sounded like a garbled groan in pain before he quickly slumped to his knees, futility trying to grasp vivacity, even though that would soon be gone after his organs had been brutally extracted. True to the ominous, yet obvious prediction of his impending doom, the brief kneeling position soon faltered as well and his body crumpled, swiftly descending to the hard concrete with a defeated flourish, his head lolling to the side listlessly as he had no other options available but to enter the sweet, painless sleep of death.

_"No matter how hard you try, you will never escape from me!"_

As the violence of the situation gradually escalated, the two remaining thugs stared at each other momentarily, sending silent messages with their eyes, both daring movement as neither was eager to rush to his fated disaster, and yet they knew that if stalled long enough, the duo would probably be killed at the same time. Instead of running away, they decided to pursue regardless; one brave, but clearly foolish soul finally initiated somewhat of an attack as he cautiously approached the insanely dueling, partially-morphed ninja, and the teenage punk first feigned an agile punch, then shifted positions and swung out a leg instead in a fierce kick. However, the skilled assassin did not rise to his esteemed rank from being so ignorant and susceptible to such brazen antics, and he proved his worthy superiority by grabbing a hold of the flying lower thigh and twisting it violently, shattering the relatively delicate bones with cruel ease. His adversary screamed briefly at the sharp and severe sensation, but soon, his voice was promptly stolen when two arms were suddenly thrust forward to securely clutch a certain vulnerable part of his body, and then his neck was snapped effortlessly, adding another brutally satisfying kill for the malicious, dominant fighter.

_"You belong to me and no one else!"_

For the sake of his friends, the fourth and final delinquent brashly rushed forward and slashed his knife wildly at the agile mole zoanthrope, a fervent effort of trying to land a strike, but his hand instantly loosened the grasp and he was forced to drop the handle when he received a vicious claw across his face in return. His grip on the bladed weapon lost, the injured teenager instead raised his arms toward his fresh wounds in a weak notion of protection, an instinctive move no doubt, and the keen assassin took that hesitant sliver of opportunity to slice his jagged points across his present prey's neck. A sharp howl of pain elicited loudly into the air, slightly muffled by the harsh downpour of the rain descending rapidly from the clouds above, and all the while, a small current of flowing redness continued bleeding to the hard floor, painting a tale of cold, merciless vengeance to an audience of one that was frozen with shock. Overflowing liquid from all of the young victims changed the color of the already-wet ground to a shade of deep crimson that reeked of relentless annihilation, and the setting was tainted with a strong cryptic touch that made the involuntarily stunned and immobile Uriko hastily raise a hand to cover her mouth, inhibiting a horrified gasp from escaping.

_"Mine… __**forever**__."_

After an endless period of aghast silence, the auburn-haired girl was finally able to move, only to shudder in fear at having witnessed the gruesome sight of violence, and her horrified body convulsed as numerous tears frequently stole down her chilled cheeks, mingling with the fresh wetness of the rain falling from overhead. Her stomach quivered uneasily, and vomit threatened to climb up her throat as she further gazed at the disgusting acts of brutality being displayed by her malevolent, uncaring captor, terrified of what she was being forced to witness, but try as she might, Uriko could not summon the energy to get up and leave. Suddenly, a dismembered arm flew through the air and struck the wall that was merely feet away from her face with a wet splatting noise, making her shriek aloud in terror as blood splattered all over the place, a few wayward drops landing upon her smooth, unblemished thigh, making her eyes widen even more. She quickly brushed the burning presences off with some help from the rain and then she finally ducked her head, unable to look at the sight that forced nausea upon her body as the petite youth allowed the cold water pour over her, thoroughly drenching her clothes and soaking the long thin strands of her hair.

A great understatement would be suggesting that Kenji merely enjoyed the encounter he recently finished participating in; actually, he was visibly glowering with elation at the release that he had just attained, for his pent-up frustrations finally let loose, and much tension escaped alongside it. The large quantities of blood that sprayed about everywhere was truly not a wit of a bother to him, and in fact, he thought that the crimson stains were a rather interesting change as opposed to the small amounts he had barely been able to draw from his female captive during their restrained fights. At the erstwhile thought, the cobalt-haired ninja shifted his line of sight to the aforementioned girl, and he immediately felt disgusted with her pathetic and cowering reaction, annoyed that she was practically hysterical and openly blubbering from such a small and short-lived incident, once again deeming her weak in his mind. Her shoulders were violently quivering from obvious discomfort, the motion accompanied with the shuddering of her choked sobs, and as his gaze openly locked onto the shrunken form of the feline zoanthrope, he killed the fleeting notion that furtively urged him to bend down and comfort her when his usual lack of sympathy surfaced to regain control over the situation.

"…Uriko, stand up. We are leaving now."

As icy raindrops fell from above to tangle together with the dried and renewed tears streaked across her face, Uriko's trembling chin was forcibly lifted up in one brusque yank by the relentless assassin, and so her eyes naturally flickered upon and locked with those of her supposed-savior. Glaring grimly down at her, Kenji was obviously vibrant with victory, perhaps even feeling completely smug from what he had done, but his lean form reeked of hideous death from his former opponents, causing her nose to tingle uncomfortably at the heavy scent of blood tainting her innocent essence. Seeing his presence in her intimate proximity shot fear coursing straight through her veins and she retracted in a hasty, instinctive motion, rushing into a clumsy standing position that only sustained for a short period before she slipped upon the wet ground and fell once again, this time collapsing to her knees. Concern marred his brows for a second at what just transpired, and he knew full well that the fragile girl had suffered quite a bit by now, but it was valid in only that brief period, for then he growled at her impatiently and reached toward her to snatch her arm in a vice-like grip, intending to bring his captive back to reality.

"_N-No!_" She shrieked fearfully in reply, and then yanked her elbow away to jolt up and shake free her pursuer by darting away from the bloody, grotesque scene, avidly hoping to leave the gruesome gore behind her to linger just as a merely unpleasant memory that she would surely try to forget in the very near future. The crisp clipping sound of footsteps landing in motion with her frantic running informed the frightened youth that the ninja was clearly unwilling to let her go, and that knowledge brought determination to her spirit, shooting more vibrant and persistent energy into her that allowed the girl to dash faster. She did not know how long he was willing to chase her, and she could already feel her legs beginning to weaken from her earlier efforts, but silently vowed to allow them to wither to the bone before she considered decreasing her speed for a single second, when faced with the only alternative option of giving into the devil's deal. As Uriko came closer to approaching an area unnaturally lit up by bright colors, which she presumed to be somewhere near the city, her heart leaped excitedly, feeling freedom close at hand while a small smile creased her lips at the shine of hope glowing vividly before her bright, eager brown eyes.

Unfortunately, when she was less than fifty feet away from achieving her goal of escape, a sudden weight firmly crashed down onto her back just then, and forced the cat zoanthrope to fall harshly to the cold hard ground, which knocked the breath out of her and made colored sparks twirl dizzily in her view. Her cry of pain was cut short by the abrupt blow of the floor rushing up to her chest, and her enlarged black pupils could only see darkness, while the iciness of the still-pouring rain continued to soak through her clothes and seemed to seep past the very barrier of her skin, the chill going straight to her fragile nerves. A shadowy arm slid over her forehead and past her face, such brutal strength that settled in securely around her throat, an unspoken threat to the extensive damage could be inflicted upon Uriko if she dared to disobey her spontaneous and undoubtedly dangerous captor, and she was frozen momentarily. She could only manage a slight squeak of protest as the lean elbow firmly hooked itself about her neck, and then her pursuer slowly raised her unwilling and fetal-positioned body up into a standing position, his remaining hand going to clamp upon her stomach in a silent indication of where he would strike if she resisted him.

"N-ngh…!" the trapped girl noised in discomfort, trying not to gag from the obstruction locked around her vulnerable throat.

"You lost, little girl, so you belong to me now!" An angry voice hissed right into her ear as the deadly shadow of the reaper kept her imprisoned, the low tone only able to be heard over the loud and heavy descent of the rain due to her own sensitive hearing and because he very much wanted her to acknowledge the impact of his words. "Damn you, Uriko, stop resisting the inevitable; you are mine!"

"N-no way!!" The girl finally managed to elicit, fighting the urge to shake her head in emphasis, gasping for breath as she almost choked on her own saliva from swallowing so hard in an effort to keep herself calm, and then she inwardly willed her frantic heartbeat to slow down to avoid possibly passing out due to overexcitement. "Y-you darned creep, stop saying that I'm yours, 'cause it's never gonna happen…!"

"You were defeated in two out of our three matches, kitten…" he reminded her silkily as he ran a single finger slowly along the smooth curve of her cheek in an unwilling form of caress, his lips very close to her face, and she feared that he would kiss her by force again and try to invoke a reaction from her susceptible, treacherous body. "So according to our agreement, you must now obey me for **I own you**! I shall warn you right now: if you dare to attempt an escape and break your end of the deal, you foolish little girl, then I promise you that the disposal of those lowlifes tonight will pale in comparison to what I intend to do with your cherished sister."

Shocked by his threat to her only remaining family member, Uriko squeezed her eyes shut and remained silent for such a long period that he thought she had come to her senses and submitted to his command, but then she gathered her strength and surprised him by voicing in an ear-shattering scream, "No!! I-I'll never belong to you! Grrr, you… Everything about you disgusts the heck outta me! Wh-whenever your filthy hands were on me, I wanted to puke right in your face! Y-you're nothing but a stupid crazy ninja to me, and I-I hate your guts! _I'd rather die than be stuck with you, Kenji Ohgami!!_"

To his own surprise, her deathly strong statement stung him deeply as he absorbed the intensity of her proclamation, stilling his iron-grip on her throat in the present moment, and his light amber eyes widened a bit of their own accord while he sputtered out uncertainly, "You… you would choose death over being in my presence, Uriko…?"

Although the life-loving girl truly did not mean what she had just elicited, the current tide of her ardent passion overrode her actual desires, and she cried out in vicious retaliation, "I'll kill myself right now if you try to take me back to that ugly cabin with you, s-so… so get your filthy hands off of me right now, you dirty rat!!"

Her words shot an arrow that pierced right through Kenji, and for a reason unknown even to himself, he released his hold on her and then suddenly stepped back, moving away from the hysterical girl, a thoroughly shocked expression on his face as a storm of uneasy emotions wrecked havoc within him. The dark-haired ninja stared down at his own hands, stunned that they had apparently disobeyed his innate wishes and let her go, but he soon realized that he did not want to retreat to the cottage with the brunette against her will – for a reason he was unable to comprehend, he actually desired her consent and mutual agreement. Foolishly, Kenji had thought she felt at least neutral toward his company, but his captive just yelled at him so forcefully and venomously, that his somewhat prized images and memories of the past few days of their shared heated embraces shattered in his mind, leaving him with an emptiness that he could never hope to fill. Despite their conceived physical attraction, Uriko made it painfully clear that she truly felt nothing for him, and perhaps she had only responded to his caresses to avoid receiving punishment; her admittance that she still actively loathed his very presence brought him horrible agony, even worse than the numerous open wounds that he suffered in battle before.

Letting loose a harsh inhuman cry of conflicted frustration, the ninja gripped his head with rigid anger and a split second later, his back swiftly turned to face her as he disappeared into the dark setting of the vast forest with lightning speed, irresponsibly ditching his self-made scene of destruction behind. Responding to instinct, Uriko raised a hand as if to offer sympathy to the angst-filled assassin, but of course, his rapid agility outshone her delayed reaction and she was far too late, so instead she looked over her shoulder to the city lights that seemed to shine in a nonverbal invitation to the girl. Her initial reaction was to head in the direction, but when she suddenly remembered the threat that the young assassin had issued toward her sister, she hesitated and bit her lip as indecision plagued her thoughts, both sides of her brain arguing for one cause, leaving her torn between two difficult choices; could she escape now, but then risk letting her sibling get hurt later? Of course, she knew full well that Alice was perfectly capable of defending herself, but given the merciless way the Zoanthrope Liberation Front had consistently eliminated their opposition in the past, all it would take was one momentary distraction or a well-planned attack, and the nurse could be wounded fatally, possibly even left to die.

_No… I-I can't let that happen to Sis! She won't be hurt 'cause of me! I gotta make sure they'll leave her alone, even… even if that means going back with… with Kenji._ The grueling decision made after some deliberation, the bewildered youth reluctantly edged toward the direction that Kenji previously ran off to, and she allowed her gut instinct to guide and lead her through the forest, back to the small cabin of her residence for the past few weeks, well-hidden within the woods that had silently witnessed many acts of hell served to her.


	40. A Nightmare Realized

_Special thanks and much gratitude to Andrew Glasco for his help on this chapter, especially considering the dark and malicious nature of its contents._ _Readers, please be warned of sensitive material._

**Chapter 40**

**A Nightmare Realized**

Back at the cottage, Kenji burst inside with a whirlwind of fury, throwing the door aside and allowing a strong gust of wind to shut it as he headed toward the cot silently, and then he lied down upon the cold mattress, his eyes dully focused upon the dark, drab ceiling while his thoughts wandered and dwelled on his erstwhile captive. That inexplicably infuriating girl stirred many emotions within him over the duration of the time they spent together, and not all of them were positive, but despite that and his own usual preference for solitude, part of him began to enjoy her company and somehow, that had happened without him realizing it. The stoic ninja actually looked forward to their daily interaction, for good or bad, and even felt amused by their pointless little squabbles; he was far more tolerant of her antics than his previous victims, and although he previously silenced her with force on occasion, he had not done so recently. The young man admittedly liked analyzing her as a person and trying to unlock the puzzle that was Uriko Nonomura… but in the end, a few hateful words had driven him away, and he could not figure out what changed about their relationship that made her tongue the most venomous weapon she could utilize against him.

Before _she_ had come along, his life was a perfect routine with the same usual daily expectations, fulfilling the orders from his superior officers and driving their group toward the goal of zoanthrope supremacy, and then, when Uriko entered his sacrosanct sanctuary, she turned everything upside down. In the present, Kenji allowed a quiet, bitter little laugh to slip free at the memory of his initial assumption that the young cat zoanthrope was going to be just another typical assignment, nothing special, and when the responsibility of keeping her got passed along, he would resume his usual duties and not spare her a single thought. She disrupted his peaceful stability with her aggravating hassles and confusing signals that left him wondering if she was playing some sort of mental game, while her enticing smiles beguiled the dark-haired assassin and led him to believe that she enjoyed the time they spent together, and perhaps even their previous embraces. But apparently, it had all been a lie, and if she left after his departure from the scene with the four distasteful, worthless punks, then the ninja would have failed his mission… and in one fell swoop, tarnished his immaculate reputation, thereby losing leverage over his subordinates within the ZLF, and most likely, anger his master as well.

Vividly, he recalled the way his horrified captive looked at him after he had slain the lowlifes that touched her, when they were outside and surrounded by the stains of their foul blood, the blatant repulsion that reflected in her dark eyes, accompanied with the fear and disgust on her perturbed expression. She had regarded him as though _he_ was the villain in the scenario, despite the fact that the lowly, spineless thugs were the true scoundrels, trying to force her into a lecherous activity that would no doubt end in an abysmal manner, for he did not believe they intended to simply release her after they were finished. Kenji could scarcely comprehend her reason for holding back her judgment against them, and surely she was not naïve enough to think that the punks would never attempt the heinous sin on another girl in the future; really, the young ninja felt that she should have harbored just a sliver of gratitude toward him instead of solely spewing forth such detesting accusations of his character. The seemingly harmless, yet hypocritical little victim… he thought that he had snared her within his trap and held the strings controlling her fate in his own hands, but instead, somewhere along the line, she slipped underneath his sturdy mental barrier and discreetly twisted his perspective to match similarly with her misguided perception of the world.

_Uriko Nonomura, such a baffling girl… how fervently she claimed to be innocent of all the harshness and dark truths that run abundant in reality, and yet somehow, she manages to bring about such chaotic disorder and torment… hrmp, the manipulative little nymph._

His lips twisted into a scowl at the thought of the airheaded and truly clueless girl actually trying to deceive _him_ at a game he had just about perfected, while in the meantime, unbeknownst to the young man, the object of his current fixation was right outside the location and coming closer with each passing minute…

Shivering as the rain continued to pour down upon her from above, Uriko slowed her pace considerably as she approached the cottage, her body visibly tense with rigid, doubtful fear toward what she was about to try and do: swallow her pride and make some kind of deal that would secure the safety of her sister. Dimly the girl wondered if she was crazy for willingly returning to the realm where the dangerous assassin resided, although she did it out of a desire to secure her sibling's well-being, and not because she actually wanted to adhere to the rules and the conditions of their deal with her life at stake. But despite the fact that she had reacted this way out of selfless intentions, the ever-annoying conscience arose nevertheless: no matter what she did, nothing could change the outcome of their agreement – the young cat zoanthrope had lost, and she felt certain that he would eventually make her own up to her half. The frightened brunette youth truly hated the thought of being trapped and used like a puppet to fulfill his twisted wishes, and yet… if Kenji actually intended to carry through with the threat that he issued on her only remaining family member, then she had to do whatever she could to bargain for some kind of a peaceful resolution.

On a small level deep down inside, the girl felt just a tad guilty for throwing such harsh words at him, and while she adamantly opposed his method of literally eliminating the problem of the four unruly punks, she knew that he had done it because of their involvement with her, and so she was partially responsible as well. Not that she wanted them to die, but the feline zoanthrope thought that if she had kept quiet and perhaps just made up some story about her torn clothes, then maybe their lives could have been spared… but it was too late for that now, and the vivid memory of their gruesome deaths would surely haunt her for many days to come. Trying to shake the gory images from her mind, Uriko slowly strolled up to the entrance of the cottage and she gripped the cold metal knob in one hand, gradually nudging the tall wooden frame open while her head leaned forward and peeked around the bend, her eyes seeking the ninja's form somewhere in the main room. Timidly stepping into the room, she left the door open partway and then gradually made her way toward the cot upon noticing that Kenji was lying on it, his figure utterly motionless while his eyes were blankly looking upward; when she was close enough to be heard, she cleared her throat in a shy, awkward attempt to get his attention.

Snapped out of his reverie, he arose from his position, turning his eyes to gaze upon her, and the twin amber polls were understandably filled with confusion at seeing the girl; she had just told him off rather venomously, after all, so he truly did not expect that she would return, and as such, his voice was rather brusque when he inquired coolly, "Why are you here? …What do you want?"

Feeling a tad intimidated by the unyielding harshness in his rigid expression, the slender brunette suppressed a shiver from the chill of her wet clothes and unsure of what to say, she nervously began to fidget with her braid in her hands, her gaze averted due to her current inability to look directly at him. "I-I… um, I'm sorry about what I said back there… I didn't really… mean to…"

The way that her head was turned to the side indicated to the attentive ninja that she had been sincere with the majority of the words she screamed, but instead of getting irritated at the obvious fib, he felt rather curious toward her present actions and wondered why she would even bother coming back to justify herself. "…Hrmp, you are wasting your breath with petty explanations. Regardless of your intentions, your words truly mattered little to me."

"You… you're lying, aren't you? I mean… you wouldn't have run off like that unless what I said really affected you… right?" Despite her bold inquiry, her arms rose to chest level so she could clasp her palms together in a gesture of self-comfort, almost as if she was praying for protection, and then the girl bravely inched toward his position on the rough mattress, mentally reasoning that she merely did not want to strain her ears in order to hear him clearly.

Unwilling to reveal any indication of his discomfort, he scowled under his breath at her implication of his dependence on a lowly captive, seeming as though she had misinterpreted his reason for departing from the scene, and he muttered with firmness in stubborn defiance, "I am perfectly fine… Do not concern yourself with my matters, little girl."

"Kenji, I… I didn't want to say those mean things, you know…" she mumbled softly, her expression clearly uneasy as she tried to convey her thoughts in a manner that would not somehow anger or offend him. "But, you've gotta know that I'm pretty scared about what's gonna happen to me… I-I can't be given away and… and belong to someone just like that! My family, my friends… I miss them so much, and I wanna go home to them. I like my old life, even though I'm sure you'd hate it, and I-I can't… I can't go on living without being around the people that I love…"

Getting ever more aggravated with her futile explanations and having to listen to her hearty declarations of love for a carefree life of meaningless activity, the turbulent young assassin glanced away as a frown deeply marred his eyebrows, and mentally he sought to calm his rising ire before he answered, "…Well, if you feel so inclined to leave reality and return to your former way of comfortable living, then leave, Uriko. When I left you out there, I had not expected you would actually return back here to this cottage…"

No doubt she would have taken off, had she not need to worry about her dear sister being endangered; skirting around the issue, the girl bit her lip nervously in response, unsure of what to say to that, but then she diverted his attention from the topic as she asked him something she desperately wanted to know, "…Um, could you tell me why you let me go? I-I mean, I thought that…"

"Why?" He repeated her question initially, and the dark-haired ninja paused for a few moments before replying, as he himself was still internally troubled by his impulsive decision, and since he was unable to come up with a plausible reason, he simply answered in earnest, "Because… it was apparent that you hated this place very adamantly… and by the force of your words, you seemed to harbor the same resentment toward me, as well."

Feeling somewhat assured by the uncharacteristic softness of his tone, Uriko glanced up hesitantly and focused her line of sight right upon the stiff and rigid profile of her somber companion, and she tried to figure out his present mood, despite the fact that she could not see him due to the fact that he was turned away. "Wait, but… but you knew that before, didn't you?"

"…No, not to the degree you expressed, I must admit." He shook his head to emphasize the words, his midnight blue bangs a whimsical presence grazing across his forehead in the motion, and then he continued to speak with an underlying tone of bitterness, "As a matter of fact, I thought that we were getting along fairly well for a time, kitten… However, you have obviously proven me wrong."

The slender brunette felt upset by his oddly-optimistic perspective on their shaky, tremulous relationship, thinking it was an attempt to downplay his persistent and rather frightening forceful behavior toward her a couple of nights ago, and she cried out passionately, "How could you not know? Geez, Kenji, with everything that you've done to me… I can't believe you thought that I'd actually enjoy being here with you and your weird, evil, twisted way of living! Th-those poor boys back there… I know they were really bad, but… Geez, did you really expect that I'd want you to be my knight in shining armor or something…?"

_What-? You foolish girl… _He thought with a note of exasperation betraying his otherwise emotionless expression – but of course, he should have figured that a naïve, inexperienced little amateur like Uriko would associate his action with some asinine romantic notion – and the ninja sighed impatiently as he sought to set her straight. "The punishment that I issued them was my choice, and I assure you it had absolutely nothing to do with frivolous intentions of some… blind-sighted romance."

The girl quirked a delicate brow in immediate response to his clam, showing her slight disbelief of his statement, and mentally, she searched her memory for the words that they had briefly exchanged outside prior to the slaughter before she pursued the matter a little further with, "I'm pretty sure you said that you… you hurt those guys because they harassed me…"

Feeling somewhat mildly impressed that she would actually remember their short conversation, Kenji allowed the ghost of an amused smile to play about his lips as he turned his head back to glance her way, and his light amber eyes met her dark pair evenly while he uttered in a quiet, rather careless and casual tone, "Those pathetic lowlifes became my business when they touched you. They dared to overstep their boundaries by trying to take something of mine…"

She bristled at his mention of owning her once again, but then the implication lying underneath the veil of his words made her gasp in shock, as she was frightened by his unspoken indication; with a gulp of anxiety, she inquired softly, "S-so does that mean you're gonna do…that…to everyone who gets near me?"

"Should anybody have such intentions toward you…" he drifted off on a firm note, letting the deadly threat hang in the air intentionally, as he knew full well that she would understand his meaning.

"B-but you can't do that, Kenji-!" The shocked youth exclaimed outright, aghast that he did not seem to show even a sliver of remorse for the lives that he slain so readily and brutally before her eyes, nor had he hesitated in his decision to apparently commit the same sinful crime again if another man dared to get close enough to her. "Holy Mackerel, you don't have any right to decide who gets to live or die; you're not above the law! I-I mean, you… you could get hung in the Detention Centre for what you did to those boys if you were arrested… You're just a cold-hearted murderer trying to control other people's lives when you're nothing more than an ordinary person yourself…"

"It is apparent that you have forgotten my trade, my dear, foolish cat," the cobalt-haired assassin deadpanned with a stern expression on his face, and he shot his captive a cold, hard glare as acid was laced with his retort, "Contrary to your misguided beliefs, you and I are not 'ordinary people' like the majority of those living around this world. No, I am a proud zoanthrope, unlike you, and I know my rank in the evolutionary chain… I wholeheartedly embrace the position that we have over the weaker species. I have absolutely no qualms teaching lowly scum, especially _humans_, where their place in society lies… and I want to hear nothing more from an ignorant human-loving zoanthrope like yourself. If you seek to lecture me, then I advise you to keep your weak-minded sentiments to yourself and just get out."

"H-hey, don't call me that!" Uriko immediately fired back, inwardly grimacing at the negative-sounding label, and then she hung her head shamefully, noticing her torn clothing at that moment, which caused her to shiver a bit at the dark memory of the four boys that harassed her; who knew what would have happened had Kenji not arrived to stop them…? "I-I'm not…"

"Hah, so you claim, and yet you certainly portray yourself in that light, little girl…" he sneered openly in disbelief, and discreetly, his eyes followed her line of sight down to her torn clothing, where it was then that he noticed her… very obviously soaked tank top; the way that the wet, thin cotton material clung to her skin so transparently left very little to the imagination…

"Oh, you're such a jerk-! Just 'cause I'm not dead inside like you doesn't mean I'm a human lover!" She cried with earnest passion in her voice, but despite her strong words, her hands began to absentmindedly toy with the open folds of her cut yellow jacket, the gesture betraying her nervousness; eventually, she grimaced and shrugged the attire off of her shoulders, hating the reminder of what the perverted thugs had tried to do to her. "Y-you're not being fair about them, Kenji! We're humans too, you know that! We just… we just happen to be a little different, that's all…!"

Flames of heated disdain flickered up within his eyes at her proclamation, feeling resentment steadily rise at being placed in the same category as a race of frail, powerless, simpering, sentimental beings, and the young man shook his head as he relayed to her in a firm, acidic tone, "No, Uriko, you are sorely mistaken. We are not humans. We are zoanthropes, in an entirely separate class from _their_ kind, and as such, we are superior over them in every way. How can you not see this? Evolution has obviously spoken out in favor of zoanthropes, demanding that we, as the new, more dominant species, inherit the earth… and yet, humans have somehow managed to suppress us, due to their erratic fear toward our powers. Humans defy evolution in their feeble attempts to claim the highest position… and by so adamantly refusing to submit to us, the superior race of zoanthropes. The only reason they still reign is because our numbers are so few, but that will change soon enough. Hrmp, and I am sure that you are blissfully unaware of this, but many zoanthropes have been persecuted without just cause, and murdered like petty stray mutts by your precious humans… Now, do you still insist on siding with **them** in spite of knowing their barbaric treatment of our kind?"

As he was talking, she walked by him, heading over to the window next to the cot, and when the girl arrived there, she pulled the glass frame up and flung the torn jacket outside into the bleak darkness, silently hoping that it would soon rot into the earth, but then she immediately whirled around to face him right afterward, her expression uncharacteristically cold. "I know that some humans have been cruel to zoanthropes… but only those scoundrels should be arrested and locked up! They're just as bad as the humans and zoanthropes that were hunted down and killed by your stupid friends in the ZLF…! Isn't that right?"

Unfazed by her accusation, Kenji smirked and gave a small, casual shrug of indifference as he stated assertively, "As the humans say, 'an eye for an eye,' my dear… But seeing as you are obviously blinded by your ill-placed trust in humanity's lovely and supposedly-perfect outer guise, I would hardly expect you to understand. I suppose you must enjoy evading the truth and drowning in ignorance…"

"Well… you don't know everything about them!" Uriko insisted with a brief stamp of her foot in hearty emphasis, beginning to get annoyed at his stubborn unwillingness to shed his prejudices, and then her delicate facial features twisted into an expression of distaste as she exclaimed, "You only believe whatever your master tells you, and all you say is the stuff he's poisoned you with… and that's really sad… At least humans aren't so stupid that they'd give up their lives to be controlled by some ugly, crazy old pervert like Busuzima…!"

Though he was a bit aggravated by her blatant show of disrespect toward the esteemed scientist that he served, the young ninja fought inwardly to control his rising temper, and then he responded slowly, inserting blatant confidence into each and every selected word, "Though some unapprised outsiders may consider my master deranged, none of us are doubtful of his brilliance, nor do we ever undermine his determination toward our ultimate goal of rightful zoanthrope supremacy… but that is obviously something you will never be able to comprehend. You and your idealistic _friends_ might be optimistic and hopeful about having a peaceful coexistence with humans, but do they truly understand the sacrifices that zoanthropes would have to make in order for that to happen, and all that we must submit to? Only a fool will believe that humans would not attempt to suppress us for the so-called sake of 'peace.' On the other hand, our organization is well acknowledged of humans and their biased perception of where we stand with them in this world… From what we have witnessed countless times, I can say that humanity as a whole has but one consistent reaction to zoanthropes: abstract fear, and then from that instantaneous apprehension, fury and resentment quickly spurn as well…"

"Anger and hate…" she echoed softly, her eyes narrowing to indicate her own growing disgust with the discussion of his nefarious group and his brazen attempts to validate their horrible actions, and the feline zoanthrope dared to admit, "It's funny you mentioned those, 'cause I'm pretty sure I feel that way toward you right now…"

His mind whirled from the futility of their pointless conversation while his nerves tingled with the same emotions that she had just indicated, and finally, the frustrated ninja simply folded his arms and bit off angrily, "If you have nothing else worthwhile to say, then silence yourself, this instant; you are just wasting your breath and my time, for your words fall on deaf ears… My mindset is firm, and above all else, I certainly have no intentions of converting to your human-loving ways… you should have realized that by now."

Her expression conveyed sadness as Uriko gazed at him intensely, her dark brown eyes shining with confusion at his adamant unwillingness to consider giving regular humans a chance, and she reluctantly admitted, "Yeah, I guess you're right about that… But Kenji, don't you even wanna try and change your mind? You're not being fair, you know…"

Gazing directly at his young captive, the ninja responded by offering her a simple, yet doubtlessly impacting statement; "My name is Bakuryu… and I will always retain pride in my birthright."

The girl stubbornly shook her head and stood her ground, refusing to believe that he could be comfortable with such close-minded bigotry, and selflessly she suggested while her lithe form began to shiver slightly from the chill of her wet clothing that had penetrated down into her skin, "Um, well, m-maybe I can help you? I have a lot of f-friends that are regular humans…"

_I would not be caught dead associating with their filthy, unruly kind. _His eyes blatantly raked over her slender body upon noticing her motion, the twin amber orbs glowing with clearly visible, shameless lust as his lips moved softly to spill forth threatening words that made his ire clearly obvious to her, and it was very evident that his tight rein on inner boiling emotions just barely held together. "My patience with you is drawing thin, little girl… Now, get out of my sight immediately… unless you want to be hurt beyond what you dreamed in your most horrid nightmares, Uriko… If you do not depart, then I will… I will take you, drag your worst fear into reality… and make true the horrid scenario that you have constantly woken up from, to assure yourself that the event only took place within your subconscious mind. Pain shall cling to your pores as I wreck havoc upon your yielding, supple body, use it to satisfy each of my wicked whims and desires, and all the while, I will not care a whit about how you are feeling, or acknowledge the cruel way that I am treating you." The dark aura emitting from his form and the fire that burned in his large pupils proved his words utterly serious, and his balled fists were at his sides, clenched tightly as if to prevent his hands from initiating the action of thrusting forth and grabbing a hold of the feline to carry out his threat right then and there.

Her small pink tongue tentatively slid out to move over the sandy surface of her suddenly dry lips, a nervous action unconsciously invoked by her being to clearly betray signs of fear toward the sole person that was nearby, and she knew that he paid very close attention to her each and every little gesture. Frigid amber eyes watched her with cool intensity, so attentively that the gaze made Uriko fidget from feeling uncomfortable, and struggling to control a secret urge to tremble, she also began to wring her hands together in further apprehension of the next action that he might take. In spite of her futile attempts to conceal the anxiety that tainted her current state of mind, the dark-haired ninja still noticed all of her actions, as he always did, and he had gotten used to her reactions after studying the girl daily for the past few weeks, knowing exactly which buttons he could push to invoke an emotion or attempt to set her off. From his numerous encounters and interactions with her, Kenji had long since learned how to manipulate his precious young captive to fall into his ploys, much like a master plotting a malicious plan, and acquiring aid from unwilling bystanders by stringing along his favorite prized marionettes, controlling them against their wills…

Still, she found herself grounded to her spot and almost unable to leave his dangerous presence, and that baffling concept plagued her greatly; true, she wanted to protect her sister, but was that really the only reason causing her not to take this chance to finally escape and hopefully never have to see this vile assassin again? As Uriko watched him turn away and grip the sides of his head in a visible show of utter frustration, pity and guilt grasped her heart that very instant, the latter being only because she had partially lied when she was screaming words of raw hatred and disgust at him back outside in the horrible setting. However, it would take massive efforts to make her admit any pleasant feelings toward the arrogant ninja aloud, or that his previous embraces, although only somewhat unwelcome, had awakened many foreign feelings inside her body, and helped the girl better understand the forbidden concept of desire. His kisses were hard and bruised her lips from his fierce and relentless passion, but surprisingly, Kenji still sparked tantalizing reactions within her, while his unabashed explorations over her responsive skin with his unusually heated hands had set her tingling nerves on fire, dazzling and enthralling the youth in a world of pure sensation.

Yet even with those inner revelations running through her mind, there were no other words she could offer him now that he had given forth a rare admittance of weakness: apparently, her very presence provoked his desires, and it seemed like he was close to the breaking point from what the girl presently witnessed. If she tried to speak any further, such as inquire about his threat on her sister, she might risk him attacking her, and perhaps he would make his dark threat a frightening reality, an occurrence she had been afraid of happening for many days, although to her great relief, he had never indeed took her that far by force. But now that he was apparently going to let her be free, the feline zoanthrope felt that before she left the vicinity, Kenji deserved at least one small gesture that she could offer him of her own will, despite his current alarming state, and if he would feel just a little bit less distressed, then it would be well worth her discomfort. Sighing in uncertainty, Uriko inwardly mustered up the courage and tentatively approached the cobalt-haired older teenager, and she stepped forward until only a foot separated them, and then she leaned toward him, gently reaching up to place her hand on his shoulder in a gesture of comfort, but he instantly jerked away from her touch.

_Kenji…_ A sudden wave of sympathy struck her that moment at realizing how much she must have hurt him with the ferocity of her words, and impulsively, she rose up to place a chaste, dainty kiss on his lips, hoping to ease his pain even slightly, but when the girl pulled back, she was suddenly startled by his strange, unreadable expression.

Despite his own boasted restraint of control in the past, Kenji's initial reaction was to be absolutely stunned; he had finally offered his captive her freedom, what she wanted from day one of her stay, all the effort she put into fighting to achieve, so she should have been out the door the instant that he generously granted her the reward. Although he thought that she had at least felt neutral toward him, Uriko made her disgust toward him very evident by the way that she screamed at him, when they were back at the gruesome scene, right after fighting the four juvenile punks that now lied still and lifeless on the ground, deprived of all aspects of life. The ninja had defeated the worthless fools for her sake, but she returned his gesture of protection with scorn, and so he was burned by the scorning look of despise in her eyes, and he realized that did not want to force her back to a place she loathed so much, hating it and him thoroughly with both mind and body. However, he felt very confused by the kiss that she had given to him just now, as well as her hesitation to leave, and at the bewildering thought, anger and primal aggression suddenly ignited in his light amber eyes when his mind wondered if she was teasing him again and trying to toy with his emotions.

_What did she touch me for…? I told her to leave, and yet she is still here… how odd… She claimed such a passionate desire for her freedom, but does not take the blatant opportunity to attain it when the chance is given to her…? Why has she not departed already? This baffling girl, her only consistency is her constant mixed signals…! How dare she trifle with me… as if I was her damn plaything!_

In that very second, a thin, taut cord inside of him snapped, and the delicate barrier separating intelligent and instinctive actions shattered to discard all logic in his mind, allowing his bestial, primal impulses to take control, which avidly sought release from all the unbearable pressure and tension that had built up and been concealed inside…

Reason completely escaped his mind at that moment, and the instant she had began to draw away from him was when all hell broke loose; with wild desperation in his eyes, Kenji lurched at her suddenly and grabbed the girl tightly in his grasp, imprisoning her as his mouth swooped down to roughly claim his prize. Although initially frozen by absolute shock, her immediate reaction was to squirm and fight her way loose, but his steely iron grip secured her sides as he kissed his companion fiercely, allowing invisible and formerly inhibited desires to be set free, unleashed and acting out his primitive male desires. Succumbing to the natural instincts of craving freedom, Uriko recovered from her shock and struggled against her captor in vain; she consumed most of her energy trying to break away instead of realizing and focusing on the intentions he would follow through with no blockages or pauses this time. The empowered ninja released his unwilling partner for a second only to push her hard, and the amount of force he issued left his prey with only one option: to move backwards, and he continuously shoved her until she fell onto the cot, a short gasp eliciting into the air when the wind was suddenly knocked out of her.

Not wanting to give her enough time to recover, the ninja quickly straddled his young captive with his lean, strong legs while his elbows pressed down on her shoulders, his hands beginning to frantically explore her body, needing to feel yielding, soft skin against his own calloused surfaces. His head descended rapidly and his lips fervently attacked her exposed neck, pulling at her cool, albeit still sensitive flesh and he silently reveled in her noised reactions, while claws discreetly elongated from his nails and hastily ripped through her thin clothing to discard the torn material onto the floor. More parts of her lithe form were soon bared to his hungry eyes and Kenji feasted upon the sight eagerly, ascending slightly to roam her delicate curves as he kept stripping her upper attire off with enthusiastic speed, smiling wickedly at the feeble barrier that stood in his way, shielding her precious twin globes from his view. Deciding to discard such frailty without hesitation, he divested of the item by simple way of bare strength, yanking the bra apart with two clenched fists wrapped around each strap, and secretly guffawing inside when he heard her gasp of horror at his action while her arms reflexively moved to cross and cover the nudity.

"You should have ran when you had the chance, you foolish cat…" the sinful killer hissed viciously as he carelessly slapped her hands aside, and then he quickly bent down to snatch a pointed nipple into his mouth, pleased when he heard her breath catch as he barely restrained himself from biting it for the purpose of sadistically bringing forth a cry of pain. When Uriko continued to resist him and he spied a clenched fist flying toward his face out of the corner of his eye, the resolute ninja clutched her forearms with his steel-strength fingers, and he held her down forcefully, still distracting the girl by assaulting her breast, feeling confident that she would submit to him soon enough. He actively flicked the tip of his tongue over the taut peak, knowing full well that despite her current animosity toward him, his forced partner would still derive some pleasure from the feeling, and she indeed gasped to prove him right, although her senses were gathered more quickly this time and a slender leg bent up to knee him. His fast reflexes allowed him to dodge the blow quite readily, but nevertheless, Kenji was rather angry at her attempt and so he purposefully sank his teeth into her delicate skin, just hard enough to install fear into the girl, consciously reminding himself not to continue applying pressure to the point that he would draw her precious blood.

"A-argh! Get off of me!!" Uriko shrieked loudly, not from the slight pain of his bite, but rather in protest against what he was doing, feeling direly afraid and silently wondering just how far her captor intended to go this time, and alarmingly enough, he showed no signs of stopping until his satisfaction would be met at long last. A cruel grin tainting his lips, he used both knees to push her legs apart, and in the momentary separation, he slid between them and just comfortably adjusted there before beginning to thrust at her through their thin, wet clothing, grinding his hips intimately against the girl and relishing in her surprised gasp from the sudden carnal action. Despite the fact that their present encounter had just begun mere minutes ago, she was already arousing him to no end, and Kenji wanted to make absolute certainty that she knew of his condition, as he felt confident that she would be even more frightened at the knowledge, and he could take advantage of her erratic, impulsive movement. True enough, when the domineering ninja firmly pressed his hard erection to her supple, yielding body, his partner released a small whimper and her struggle increased rather actively, and he almost wanted to laugh in devious pleasure at the irony that she had no idea she was actually feeding his growing sadistic hunger.

"I will make sure you never defy me again, girl… and if this is what I must do to secure your obedience, then so be it…" he whispered darkly right into her ear, his lips briefly teasing her sensitive lobe before they skimmed along the curve of her cheek and headed toward her neck, latching onto a small spot and sucking strongly. With his weight keeping Uriko snugly trapped, the dark-haired young man felt confident enough to allow his hands to drift away from gripping her hips, and swiftly traveled downward, carrying darker intentions, and upon reaching the constraints of her lower attire, thin, sharp claws began to elongate from his fingers. He shred the last barrier standing between him and his ultimate desire, encouraged by her sudden whimper of fear, and then he bruised her lips with an aggressive kiss while discreetly his hands went to the belt at his waist and unbuckled it swiftly, proceeding to tug off and throw aside the bottom half of his already-torn ninja gi. His mind still muddled by the powerful instinctive urge to dominate the weak girl and wrench submission from her, Kenji quickly reverted the brief transformation and splayed his open palms against the cool flesh of her inner thighs, holding her legs apart as he positioned himself before her private region, his hardened erection nudging her entrance with stiff determination.

_No…!!_ Her final cry of defeat was weak and went unheard…

He was inside her with one hard thrust, effectively forcing his way past her natural barrier to sink inward, contently groaning in his effort at impaling her soft folds for the first time, while his ears were mute to her muffled cry of pain, covered by his mouth over hers, effectively sealing her voice into obligated silence. Trapped in the field of his dominant influence, the girl could only scream in her mind, offering wordless resistance, but with his forcefully intended weight crushing vital breath out of her chest, she was becoming slightly lightheaded from the oxygen deprivation as the long minutes dragged on endlessly. She still had her hands weakly pressed against his chest in an earlier attempt to push him away before it was too late for him to commit the sinful act, but her muscles suddenly went limp as her will to fight diminished with each persistent drive of his motions, the pace increasing leisurely over each passing moment. His fingers dug firmly into the soft, delicate skin of her shoulders, and he kept Uriko well suppressed using his powerful strength, securely trapping her underneath his body while the wet muscle behind his lips breached the entrance of her mouth and toyed with his victim in an effortless fight for control, easily crushing her into submission.

The empowered Kenji savored the feel of her smooth skin squirming in his iron grasp, her yielding flesh rippling pleasantly against his hard form, feeding fuel to the amorous fire that burned hotly within him, ignited from the very first moment he had touched the enticing girl those countless days ago, the memory imprinted in his mind. After a breathless gasp broke free from her lips, Uriko released a whimper of pain and obvious discomfort mixed together as her facial features twisted to indicate extreme distress, but he merely heard music, as the sensation of her nether heat surrounding his sensitive length was maddeningly delicious, and her slight struggle only encouraged him to press onward further. Giving into the primal urges that struck him in a sudden fierce wave, his movement accelerated in a quickened pace as his mouth left hers to slide over to his prey's yielding, pouting cheek and his tongue protruded to slowly lick the gradual flow of tears upon the soft surface, her physical expression of agony adding to his power. Warm wetness of her sorrow steadily and reluctantly continued to trickle down from her tightly shut eyes in response to his sadistic, harm-inflicting action as the overwhelmed youth was depleted of her energy, and he eagerly caught every last salty drop, her very evident suffering heightening his arousal instead of depleting it.

The agony of his forced intrusion was incredible and overwhelming for Uriko and no matter how hard she tried to block out or deny the violation being forced upon her, ice-cold reality always inevitably came crashing down, and she wanted to scream at having her lithe form so brutalized. Trapped underneath his fiery strength, she felt as if he was tearing her body apart with his speed and the depth he was plunging into – not to mention her back being pressing deeply into the mattress certainly made it understandably hard for the unwillingly-submitted girl to breathe. The blood coming from her ripped barrier aided his passage a bit, slicking the insertion path and allowing him to enter and retreat with more ease, while slightly ceasing the dryness that had caused discomfort for both parties earlier in the initiation of the act, making the violator's task ever easier. Just then, Kenji suddenly went even faster than before, and when his head descended to her shoulder, his teeth clamped down onto the delicate skin without warning, and she tried to elicit the intense pain aloud, but his hand flew up quickly to render her silent as his hot release came spilling inside her.

When he collapsed atop her after spending his energy, it was finally over, and yet the dominated girl felt dirtier than ever as she stared up at the ceiling listlessly, further cringing when the insistent body stayed on hers and dark blue hair tickled her shivering flesh as he nudged her neck in an almost tender gesture. Disgusted with his relentless implication, the passive half-beast turned her face to the side, refusing to help his strange show of twisted affection, but she also did not deter his efforts either, and merely shut her eyes as the triumphant conqueror settled more comfortably against his possession. Bitter numbness coursed through Uriko's body as a result of her torn inner-conflicting emotions, as one part of her cursed the cruel killer for his brutal violation, and yet the opposite side venomously blamed her light kiss of comfort as the cause that had started it all, wondering the blame was more on her than him. Her lower regions still ached considerably from his brash treatment of her person, and the brunette repeatedly tried to slam her legs shut together in a weak motion of protection, but her forced bed partner had wedged a lean thigh in-between so she could do nothing more than close them partway, still feeling dreadfully exposed in the end.

The aftermath of the violent act left Uriko woefully sore and more than just slightly livid, but with her current state, the exhausted teenager knew full well that she was in no condition to avenge the malicious brutality, and so despite the vivid images of the horrid event plaguing her mind, she meekly closed her eyes and quietly cried herself to sleep.


	41. Violation Of Spirit

_An extra helping of brownie points goes to Andrew Glasco for his assistance and valuable input on this chapter._

**Chapter 41**

**Facing The Aftermath**

When he groggily awoke the next morning, Kenji felt a strange sense of fulfillment, and as he was unused to the presence of another body lying so closely and intimately in bed with him, it took a few minutes of reminiscing before he realized what had happened between them the previous night. Recalling the events, he acknowledged that the rapturous experience had brought his first sexual release ever, making the assassin realize the purpose of his male part that he usually regarded as only being necessary for waste disposal, but now, oh, what delicious sensations he felt when it was sheathed deep within his passive captive. He found that her skin was still pleasantly soft to the touch at present, and the young man had to admit that resting against such a delicate, smooth surface did not bring the least bit of displeasure in him; just then, a fleeting thought of awakening the girl for another… undoubtedly delightful encounter… briefly drifted by his mind. The ninja immediately glanced her way, noting with mild amusement that Uriko had crunched herself into as much of a fetal position as she was allowed to in spite of the strong leg that he inserted between her thighs to prevent full closure, and he smirked smugly at her failed attempt, knowing she could not hide from him when he wanted to see her.

With a small, wicked grin creasing his lips and naughty intentions running through his head, Kenji bent over to the dozing half-beast and placed his mouth on her peacefully rising cheek, very lightly kissing her cool skin while a fugitive hand trickled slowly across the upper portion of her body, heading toward his preferred areas of interest. His fingertips lazily trailed a circle along the curve of her breast, and then he gently tapped the gradually hardening nipple, his action stealing an indecipherable noise from the sleeping beauty that was barely audible to his ears, although his head did perk up to glance at her even as his hold on his subdued captive tightened a bit. True to his perceptive nature, the girl in question shifted slightly while her lips parted to release another quiet sound, this one a bit more detectable than the last, and yet the ninja was unsure of what feelings from this reaction could be depicted, due to her current subconscious state, but nevertheless, he sought to awaken Uriko in a rather interesting manner. He leaned in closely next to her neck and inhaled her feminine scent, feeling a familiar desire begin to stir deep in his loins, and he continued watching his bed partner as his lean digits carefully ran over her soft mound, inwardly marveling at the feel of such silkiness, a rather sharp contrast to his own skin, a little calloused considering his rough line of work.

Surely drowning in the dark murkiness of the dormant, unconscious realm, his captive stirred at his touch but did not awaken, although her facial features twisted into an expression of tension, which caused a sickeningly satisfied grin found its way to his lips, as the young man surmised that she was probably exhausted from their intimate session the night before. With her lips curled softly in the midst of slumber and her thin, long lashes splayed delicately across the smooth space of pale skin underneath her eyes, she appeared ever so alluring, the very personification of faithful trust and almost childish innocence, and he certainly could not deny that he still harbored an attraction toward her. Despite her petite frame and amateurish fighting skills, the girl was quite fiery and spirited, even bold enough to have defied him from the first day of her capture, and now, she seemed rather distressed in her sleep, and this little fact pleased him, putting the ninja all the closer to his vow to break her; in fact, he might have already done so. At this gratifying thought, Kenji dipped his head into the crevice between her chin and throat, and he allowed his tongue to begin playing about the sensitive skin of her neck, his hold on her firming a tad possessively, as he sought to keep his precious pray closely to him, for Uriko was his, and he would not allow another man to go near her.

Her entire form taut and still sore from the night before, the slender brunette shifted slightly when her bed companion started to kiss her vulnerable, smooth flesh, and the contact caused clear discomfort to form over her face in spite of the subconscious state, while her mind dimly acknowledged the presence of warm wetness. Greatly fatigued, she squirmed weakly and shivered from the contact on instinct alone, as if her body knew of the looming danger, and a few minutes passed before she slowly creaked one eye open, feeling utterly drained of all energy, similar to the wrought-out state that usually followed after a long, intense battle requiring use of her beast form. Soaking the pillow with her tears during the night previous night, the girl had managed finally to fall asleep after some time, but she experienced a very disturbed rest, one that was tainted by nightmares and the memories of vivid tearing pain, a sharp sensation that she certainly would not forget anytime soon, leaving her nerves tense and edgy. With a soft moan that betrayed her current distress, Uriko dazedly lifted her head a bit, her mind too troubled and muddled to grasp her current location, but upon catching sight of Kenji nuzzling at her throat, she remembered his sinful act in a split second, and apprehension immediately paled her complexion while her breath quickened in the same sync.

Ever aware, the young man noticed her movement and his head craned up to focus his gaze on her even as he continued his sensual ministrations, and although he spoke naught a word, he allowed a small smirk to play about his lips, knowing full well that his eyes and actions would tell her all that needed to be said.

_N-no, he can't… What does he want now…? _Whimpering in response to his blatant show of control over her, the girl immediately turned her face to the side and instinctively started shifting around the bed, trying to move her body away from the lust-filled eyes of her dominant captor in spite of his insistent grasp, the fear within her rising steadily higher.

His hold on her form remained disturbingly firm as she resisted the steel grasp, but to no avail, and after a short period of time passed, he finally voiced himself in a low tone, his words slick and devastating to his hapless captive, "Mmm… there is no use in fighting it, my precious little kitten… You are truly mine now…"

With a small noise of distress in response to his claim, Uriko merely struggled harder and splayed her hands against his chest, beginning to push him away as she was desperate to escape the memory of their forced intimacy that occurred the previous night, and all the while, tears glistened in her dark eyes, threatening to fall.

Growing slightly impatient with her antics, the cobalt-haired ninja sought to cease her stubborn, useless attempts to get away, and he merely pressed himself against her harder and whispered harshly into her ear, his hot breath fanning across her smooth skin, "Stop resisting… Have you not yet figured out that your efforts are useless? You belong to me, dear cat, and you _will_ do as I say… unless I need to remind you of your place…"

Instantly afraid that he intended to take her again by his somber expression, Uriko cried out in obvious fright and quickly froze, reluctantly allowing twin thin trails of wetness to streak down her cheeks as the submissive girl winced at the sharp reminder of his hardness tearing through her delicate virginity and forcefully stealing her innocence. "No-! D-don't hurt me… p-please, don't… not again…"

Kenji noted the grimace and unease marring her fragile facial features, and for the first time, he realized that the sight of her tears was bringing about a strange urge, making him almost want to hold her close in a soothing gesture, but then the brief impulse faded and he merely shot her an unwavering glare of annoyance before pulling away completely. "Tch… pitiful weakling…"

The girl remained still for several moments after he left the circumference of her personal space, as she sought to make sure her captor was not just waiting for her to drop her guard and sneak in another assault, but when nothing happened, she hesitantly scooted toward the edge of the cot, slowly moving away from her violent bed partner. Shakily, she rose from the rough mattress and stumbled as she began to walk toward her belongings, and it was then she realized with a silent grimace that the aching soreness between her thighs had likely weakened the strength of her leg muscles, so with this knowledge in mind, the slender brunette sought to leave even more, despising the presence of her captor. Her dark brown eyes carefully and warily watched him in fear that he would launch some kind of unannounced attack against her, for she fully intended to go outside, but Kenji merely remained seated in the same position, his expression unreadable as silence hung heavily in the room; just then, she swiftly reached her duffel bag and hurriedly unzipped it. While she was clumsily fumbling through the contents, she briefly turned and absentmindedly glanced off to the side, but suddenly caught sight of the two ripped pieces of her bra laying on the floor, as well tattered strips of the attire she had worn the night before, and this reminded her anew of the horrid events that took place mere hours ago.

After tearing her gaze away, Uriko quickly yanked out her bathing supplies and wrapped a large soft tower around her body, completely shielding her nudity from her keen observer, and then she immediately headed for the door, possessed by an overwhelming urge to cleanse herself of his evil presence, and get rid of his musky, spicy scent that still lingered around her senses.

As soon as she had left, a victorious grin lit his features, although it did not quite reach his eyes; from her timid actions, the cobalt-haired ninja knew that his captive was now deathly afraid of him once more… as well she should be, and her fear made him secure in the knowledge she would not run, so he would not have to scrutinize her every movement for the time being. However, he was aware of the fact that when he forced her into submission, she might have become emotionally unstable as a result of it, and in her delirium, the girl could be foolish enough to attack, and if she actually dared to raise a hand toward him, he would certainly not grant her any leniency in his retaliation at present. With that decision in mind, Kenji stood up and calmly strolled over to the dresser, retrieving one of his usual skintight ninja gis to clothe himself, and he silently vowrf to bathe later when Uriko was not around, but for now, he had no qualms about basking in the solitude of the quiet cabin, and he would take advantage of the tranquility to meditate and reflect on the events of the previous night. What had transpired between them still lingered in his mind, and as he returned to the cot and tucked in the sheets and neatly folded the blanket, the young man periodically gazed down at the faint indentation of their forms in the mattress, the sight causing a small smile of satisfaction to crease his lips, for he truly enjoyed being intimate with her, and he inwardly wondered when their next encounter would take place…

She certainly seemed appalled with what happened, which he attributed that to the childish attachment she had to her precious virginity, and at this, he frowned slightly, recalling when he warned her about the inevitable loss of innocence, but at least now, she surely understood the difference between perceived fantasy and true reality. Gone now was the formerly fiery spark of rebellion in her eyes, and the dark-haired ninja realized with a cool smirk that he had finally broken her stubborn spirit… he felt quite certain of this, based on her earlier reaction, and a twinge of pride grazed his senses at discovering and taking advantage of what seemed to be his captive's greatest weakness. His domineering actions the night before had been necessary to make her submit to him unconditionally, for prior to that, he was far too lenient with the free-spirited cat zoanthrope, but he vowed to be stricter and not allow even the slightest hint of disobedience from her; Uriko would no longer be overstepping her boundaries so freely and readily. Hardening his expression at the faint reminder of all their past petty arguments, Kenji wordlessly proceeded to the kitchen area of the small cabin, searching through the cabinets for a simple can of soup, as he intended to make and eat some breakfast before heading outside to ensue his usual daily routine of training.

Some distance away from the cottage, the distressed half-beast was hurriedly running toward the lake, eager to arrive and direly feeling the need to delve into the icy environment rather than stay dormant in the cottage and be plagued with the horrible images that reminded her of the atrocious events that had occurred the night before. The fiery persistence of pain lingered around the sensitive area of her inner thighs, and she was flabbergasted with a bit of shock when she discovered how strongly it affected her, even to the point of giving her difficulty in a simple action, such as mere walking, and she moaned shrilly in frustration at this unpleasant bit of knowledge. Once at her desired destination, the girl quickly threw off her towel and supplies to the side, and without hesitation, jumped into the cold body of water, actually relieved at the sensation of her skin tingling from the initial shock of the rapid temperature change; trying to shake off the effects, she swam around actively for a bit to warm herself up. Uriko lost track of the amount of time that had passed before she made a conscious decision to stop frolicking about, and glumly she made her way over to the place where her bar of soap sat, grabbed it, and furiously began to scrub all over her body, determined to discard each and every one of Kenji's marks that had marred her previously smooth and unblemished flesh.

Though she was unwilling to recall the details of the dark incident, the girl found herself lost in thought without even realizing it, and she paid little attention to the sun's slow crawl over the clear blue morning sky as she thoroughly cleaned her trembling form that still ached at the mere reminder of the ninja's rough and brash treatment of her person. There were certain areas that she repeatedly washed over a number of times, her hands shaking at being close to the places where she had been so impacted with blistering hot pain, and sometime later, Uriko finally relinquished her viselike grip of the worn-down soap and set it down next to her towel as she sighed restlessly. Turning her attention to the quivering surface of the lake that surrounded her petite body, she just stared blankly into space, feeling a bit sore and raw from the force of her own vigorous scrubbing, but she felt grateful that her bare flesh was growing a little numb from the temperature of the chilly liquid that numbed her senses. Unsure of how long to stay inside, the young brunette listlessly weaved her hands across the wet surface and trickled ripples out of her fingers, the small tremor of shaky waves reminding her of her own unsettled mind, and when she saw that her wrinkling skin, the girl emerged from the water and slowly headed back toward the isolated cottage with great trepidation.

Upon arriving there, she lightly took a hold of the doorknob, twisted it, and then gradually edged the tall wooden frame open before stepping inside, her eyes nervously darting around the small vicinity as she worriedly expected the sight of her captor's smirking, triumphant face to greet her, but to her great relief, he was out for the time being. Carelessly tossing her supplies back into her bag, the trembling youth immediately walked over to the cot and dived under the covers, hastily pulling them over her head as she forced her mind to stop dwelling on dark unpleasantness, and it took some effort before she was able to enter the blessed disillusioned state of ignorant unawareness. Consumed with melancholy and unwilling to face the reality of her attack, Uriko fell into a restless, uneasy sleep, as her subconscious mind was once again tormented by the painful memory of his violation, replaying it a countless number of times while she was helpless to cease recalling the event, and her facial features twisted in visible distress. She repeatedly tossed and turned throughout her slumbering period of unconsciousness, his horrible sin obviously still affecting her in a severe way, despite the girl's weak attempts to discard the distress, but this time, there was no threatening body next to her, so she could manage a few precious hours of peace, at the very least.

The morning stretched on gradually until the day had grown late, and she kept on sleeping, even when the sun began to creep back into the hills and the light-colored sky turned dark to alert the approaching presence of dusk; Kenji returned briefly during the afternoon to gather his belongings and bathe, barely casting her form an indifferent look before he swiftly left.

While she was dozing and lost in the subconscious world, the cobalt-haired ninja remained outside for hours on end, training briskly as he fell into a rigorous, dedicated routine, barely sparing a thought for his captive during the session, since he felt quite content with how subdued she seemed in the morning, now that he had shown her his irrevocable dominance. Perhaps the stubborn, loud-mouthed girl had finally learned her place and would heed his commands whenever he issued them, and that was all he needed to know; she frustrated his efforts for the longest time, but with the occurrence of the previous night, he regained his control over her and the situation at hand. Kenji would dare not admit aloud that out of all the victims he had come across prior to his encounter with her, this feeble young cat zoanthrope happened to be his most difficult one to tame, despite of the fact that she was physically weak and only knew how to effectively run her mouth off, but then again, her supple body enticed him senseless and even took away his reason on occasion. Since he had lain with Uriko and gotten rid of the maddening sexual tension that was previously building up inside of him, surely his attraction to her would soon fade away and allow the devoted ninja to revert his attention to strengthening the acute deadliness of his fighting style and concentrate on perfecting his techniques to further aid his group in their worthy cause…

By the time the young man had returned from the lake following his bath, it was early evening, and he noted with a sliver of intrigue that the girl had continued to sleep for so long, especially considering the current hour; after returning his belongings to their usual place, he headed into the kitchen to prepare himself a modest dinner. He silently wondered when she might wake up, thinking it ridiculous that she had been in slumber the entire day, and when he finished cooking the soup, he paused for a moment before retrieving another can out of cabinets and keeping the stove on and burning hotly as he turned his head back toward the bed, casting Uriko a brief glance. A short while later, two bowls were placed upon the dining table, and Kenji was walking over to the cot, kneeling down a bit when he neared his dozing captive, and he reached across to grasp her shoulder, shaking with surprising gentleness as his expression darkened slightly in concern at her non-responsiveness, uncertain of her current condition. As she stirred from his motion, he could see that her face was rather pale, and the muscles in her body were still rigid, betraying her distraught mindset, and just then, she rolled over to the other side, eliciting a soft, wispy whimper from her lips that suggested her feeble, vulnerable state, to which the dark-haired ninja grimaced with mild unease at the blatant display.

A mild frown marred his brows when she did not stir even the slightest bit, giving him the impression that either she was deliberately ignoring him, or quite possibly, she had fallen ill, but regardless of the reason, the girl needed nourishment, and so he shook her shoulder a bit more firmly, determined to awaken her as he then voiced aloud, "Uriko, you have slept long enough today… You need to wake up now."

"Mmph…?" Groggily murmuring an incoherent reply, the drowsy youth weakly creaked her eyes open just a crack and tried to focus on the fuzzy images inhabiting her vision, vaguely acknowledging how greatly fatigued her body felt, and she dimly wondered why, since she had slept all day long and thought that resting would eased her discomfort…

He leaned back a little bit as she slowly sat up, giving his captive some space, and he eyed her slender form critically, noting that she indeed seemed to be tired and fragile due to the lack of nutrition intake for the day, but he could not yet determine if she was truly ill, and so nevertheless, he commanded of her, "Get out of bed. You have to eat… before the food becomes cold."

"Huh…?" Uriko mumbled faintly in response as she gingerly held her head with her hand, waiting a few moments for her dizziness to settle down a little before she looked up at Kenji in a bit of a daze, and then with a negative gesture, she wordlessly indicated that she was not hungry; her stomach had gone numb from staying dormant so long.

His gaze remained trained upon her intensely, clearly not believing her weak claim, especially after he gave her an attentive once-over and identified the uneasy grimace present on her delicate facial features, a clear indication of an unhealthy status, and her refusal to comply was starting to make him feel quite exasperated. "So, you intend to continue depriving your body of sustenance? I can tell that you have not eaten all day."

She stared blankly into space and offered no verbal response.

Impatient with her uncanny stubbornness when he had only asked a perfectly legitimate question, Kenji frowned slightly and reached down toward the quiet feline zoanthrope to grasp a firm hold of her chin, tilting it up and forcing her to look at him while he commanded coolly, "You will answer me when I address you, little girl."

A few minutes of silence passed and she closed her eyes as if absorbing the brunt of his icy demand, and then she inhaled a single long breath, releasing it shakily before she finally whispered in such a forlorn and weak tone that her words were barely audible, "What… what does it matter to you…?"

Aggravation hardened his rigid profile, and his grasp tightened a bit to add emphasis to his next statement; "That is not important. I want you to go to the table. Refuse, and I will drag you there myself if you make it necessary."

Warily glancing his way, Uriko saw the dangerous seriousness in his stern expression, and she reluctantly decided to obey him, not wanting to get harmed as punishment for disobedience, and so the frail girl gradually eased herself out of bed, managing to stand after some effort, but mentally acknowledged the lingering weakness in her leg muscles.

Indeed, she was unable to get very far and soon stumbled, clumsily falling right into Kenji, who easily caught her in his arms, and standing firmly, he looked down at her with obvious disapproval on his face, but he held her up and supported the girl as they steadily walked over to the table together, although he did scold her somberly, "Hrmp, you should take better care of yourself, especially if you are feeling ill. You look terrible…"

Annoyance briefly flickered in her dark brown eyes in response to his callous observation, and when the pair arrived at the dining area, she placed both her hands on his lean chest to push him away, discarding his help as she tried to prop herself upright by use of her own strength, muttering under her breath, "I wish you'd leave me the heck alone… It's all your fault…"

The ninja noised something indecipherable and ignored her assertion as he ordered the distressed brunette in a calm, but noticeably strict tone, "Save your breath and just eat. You cannot get better if you continue to linger on without any nourishment… your body will only grow weaker and leave you more susceptible to ailments."

In the absence of his strong, steady arms, Uriko clutched her sides tightly as she fought to remain standing without his support; suspicious confusion etched itself into her facial features at his words, as she was admittedly surprised that he would even bother to offer her any beneficial assistance after the way he had treated her the night before. "Why… why would you…? I don't get it… I-I mean, you… you're not supposed to care…"

He dismissed her concerns with a swift wave of his hand, and then gestured toward the food on the table, waiting for her to take a seat, and when she finally did so, he sat down across from her position and explained in a brisk manner, "I noticed you had been sleeping the entire day, and you were hardly in the condition to carry yourself. Despite what you think, I truly have no desire to see you dead, Uriko. I already told you that before."

She paused a spoonful of soup midway in the air and aimlessly raised her line of sight to peer at the young assassin, allowing him to witness the bleak dullness in her formerly vibrant irises, a clear indication that she did not believe his claim, but she stayed quiet and timidly began to eat, her arm trembling a bit from the mere effort of the simple action. As she consumed more of the liquid-like substance, strength slowly returned to her limbs, although she still felt drained, her movements remaining quite sluggish, and unbeknownst to the distracted girl, Kenji was watching her ashen face all the while, noticing her delicate features that used to shine with lighthearted excitement and retained just a hint of healthy peach color. He was a tad perturbed by the flat emptiness in her eyes, inwardly realizing he had never seen Uriko in such a distraught state, and without realizing that the events of the previous night could have affected her so detrimentally, the young man wondered if some sickening virus currently inhabited her body, despite the lack of any visible symptoms. Her feeble demeanor and lifeless exterior seemed as though they should have belonged to a completely different person, for surely those traits were unfitting of the spirited cat zoanthrope that usually returned his retorts by firing scathing remarks in response, which amused him rather than inflicting insult, but now, she was practically mute and reserved, resembling a meek kitten.

Oblivious to his intense stare as her mind was preoccupied with her own troubled thoughts, the tranquil youth continued to eat slowly, and in fact, she tried to ignore his presence, not even looking up when he had finished first and left the table to head over to the sink, washing out his bowl and setting it out on the counter to dry. She faintly acknowledged the sound of the water running, but idly kept her gaze turned down upon the flat wooden surface while she ate, and paid no attention to the ninja's actions as he surveyed her condition critically, his expression appearing stern throughout the observation, but soon afterward, he glanced outside to estimate the hour due to the dark night sky. Unwilling to watch his captive complete a simple process such as mere food consumption, Kenji scoffed lightly at her languid pace, and then he deciding to leave the cottage and to travel over to the private vicinity where his master was staying at present; it had been several days since they last met, and the young man wondered if there would be a new mission to carry out. Since she seemed more capable of complying with his dominant position now that he had secured his control over her, he did not think it necessary to warn Uriko to stay and refrain from any ludicrous attempts to escape while he was away, and so he left in silence, disappearing into the shadows as he navigated through a familiar route of the vast forest toward his intended destination.

Back inside the small cottage, she finished eating and after washing the bowl at the sink and setting it down, the girl reluctantly turned her attention to the room around her, slowly scanning the area with the intention of locating the dark-haired ninja, but to her surprise, she was greeted with only silence and stillness as she found herself to be alone. Sighing listlessly, Uriko averted her gaze to the nearby cot, finding the sight completely appealing at the moment, desiring rest as her body still felt wracked with fatigue, and so she changed her clothes and quickly partook in her usual nightly rituals before she walked over to the lone bed and gingerly lied down upon the mattress, drawing the blanket over her lithe form in a protective manner. Despite the soup that warmed the girl inwardly, her stomach rumbled uneasily in discomfort and she clutched the thick covers tightly, her hands balling into tense fists as she shut her eyes and silently willed herself to fall asleep, wanting return to a state of blissful unconsciousness that would take her away from the cold, bitter temperament of harsh reality. But her dainty lips trembled at the thought of the nightmares that would surely greet her when she was deeply embedded in slumber, trapped within her own mental turmoil and unable to defend herself from the life-lusting demons that enjoyed attacking the girl during her most vulnerable state; perhaps, this time, they even intended to completely eradicate her mind…

Maybe she would feel better in the morning when the sun was out and chased away the ominous shadows with its bright rays, but for the time being, she had to brave through the night alone, and hopefully, she could survive from the onslaught of bleak monsters that sneakily entered her thoughts and sought to steal the small flames of her dim vitality.


	42. A Temporary Diversion

_The contents of this chapter are completely new material even to Andrew Glasco, but nevertheless, I want to give him credit for all the support that he has continuously provided; I would also like to dedicate this chapter to ariescelestial for venturing into the Bloody Roar fandom._

**Chapter 42**

**A Temporary Diversion**

A few nights after the intimate consummation between the dark-haired ninja and his captive, the aforementioned young man was standing outside a building and waiting for the arrival of one of his fellow group members, steadily growing impatient as he silently cursed the tardiness that could possibly affect his current short-term mission. His master had recently assigned him to it, along with another compatriot from the Zoanthrope Liberation Front, and their objective was to obtain the schedule of one of the eight Director-Generals of Japan's Ministry of Defense cabinet, specifically to find out when he would be visiting Osaka, so that the information could be passed along. The diplomat in question, Katsui Tanikawa, was rumored to be traveling to that city sometime soon to attend a conference and give a speech to address the complicated conflict that presently worried the public, and surely he would attempt to introduce legislature to place restrictions on zoanthropes in the guise of protecting humans from the so-called 'abominable monsters.' After acquiring the necessary details of his agenda, the ZLF intended to collaborate with another organization in Osaka, planning to send an ally into the meeting to monitor the topics of discussion, and if necessary, to disrupt and dispatch the gathering; rumors of their interference would intentionally reach the Resistance beforehand to draw some of them over to the distant location.

While Kenji remained idly propped against a sturdy brick wall behind him, his mind wandered over to the feline zoanthrope, presumably asleep back in the cottage at the current hour, and the events that passed during the last couple of days; when he was actually around, he noticed she had been very docile in his presence. He mentally noted her changed behavior, as well as the sickly paleness of her features, the haunted shadows in her dark eyes, and he deduced that she was sick, not realizing the real reason behind her quiescence, and so the young man recently brought fresh fruit to the secluded location in the woods with the intention of wanting to somehow help aid her body back to health. A couple of weeks prior to that, Uriko had complained about the bland repetitiveness of the canned soup that lined a long row within the kitchen cabinets, and the dark-haired ninja wondered if perhaps that attributed to a lack of nutrition for her body, despite the fact that he very rarely fell sick himself, which meant she was more susceptible. His captive continued to sleep during the day, seemingly no longer having the desire to venture outside, and her eating habits changed as well, becoming an erratic routine that he could not keep avid track of, and she possibly lost her voice from a sore throat, since the girl scarcely spoke even when prompted; she was certainly different from before.

Inwardly, he wondered if a more impacting issue had heavily impacted and affected his young captive, changing her into a shadow of her former self, wispy and unusually quiet, languidly lingering in the background while barely uttering a single word, but then again… since when did he care whether or not she was moping around? He had warned her to leave that dark and stormy night when their relationship took a drastic turn, sensing that the pressure steadily mounting from deep within was rising and threatening to overwhelm him, but Uriko did not heed his words, instead staying behind to provoke the ninja further, and in doing so, she received her punishment for it. Such a foolishly impulsive girl, whom on several occasions he had witnessed solely allowing her emotions to dictate the majority of her actions instead of using reason and logic; she would get further in the chaotic and dangerous realm of reality if only she exercised just a bit of precaution before she charged into a situation without a second thought. All too easily she could delve into a situation over her capability to handle, but she truly needed to learn how to accept the consequences of her actions, as Kenji sensed that their recent intimate encounter was a sensitive topic for her, since she had not made a single reference to the subject from the point of inception and afterward.

Realizing how long his thoughts were lingering on her, the esteemed assassin jerked his chin toward the direction of the main road, darkened by the absence of light in the dim area, and he redirected his attention to waiting for his erstwhile companion to show, knowing that he had to concentrate on the situation to better achieve success.

Quickly glancing down at the pager latched to one of his belt straps, Kenji checked the time and noised his impatience, keeping his arms stiffly crossed over his chest as he felt tempted to carry out the mission on his own, but resisted the urge, since his compatriot had the code to disable the security system in the ambassador's well-protected home. Truthfully, the young ninja preferred to complete assignments solo rather than be shackled by the liability of another person, even if it happened to be another ZLF member, but his master had strongly advised against the suggestion, commanding a minimum of at least two people assigned to each mission while stressing the importance of back-up. Although the top assassin was renowned for his fighting skills and battle prowess, he himself had to grudgingly agree with the shrewd scientist on his reasoning, and yet he did consider asking his master for another partner in the present scenario, especially considering the unreliability of this particular associate. The diminutive team for the present assignment consisted of the astute mole zoanthrope and the second highest-ranked associate in their organization; due to their respective areas of expertise, they made a powerful duo when allied together, but they disliked working with each other and barely tolerated having to cooperate on occasion, being rivals that vied for the approval of their superior officers.

Finally, the sound of a loud rumbling sequence jarred him out of his thoughts and he swiftly jerked his head toward the direction of the noise, catching sight of a motorcycle approaching him from some distance away, and upon recognizing the rider, his expression twisted in distaste as he straightened into a stiff, rigid stance. The impending bystander had joined the Zoanthrope Liberation Front approximately a year ago, and he rose rather quickly in position, being a talented practitioner of the Judo martial arts, and despite his young age at nineteen, he seemed well-versed in battle tactics, but Kenji found his disrespectful and elusive attitude to be very questionable. He was two years older than the ninja but one rank lower, a fact that seemed to irk the elder fighter more than anything else, and apparently he could not stay serious for a very long period of time, since he frequently liked to crack jokes at his fellow team members, but they often laughed along with him, and they even socialized together during their free time. His laid-back rival stood a couple of inches taller at full height, but he was usually slouched over in a lazy, careless posture, and the mole zoanthrope thought his appearance looked quite odd with his spiky red hair – obviously dyed – and loose-fitting, raggedy casual clothing that belied his inner strength, while a smug grin always hid his silent intentions.

"Hey, what's up? No need to fear, Sahichi is here," came the calm, cocky announcement without an apology or even an explanation for the tardiness, and he seemed unfazed by the resentful glare that was shot at him, indicated by the wide, confident smirk on his face as he casually slowed down to a stop.

"…You are late," the cobalt-haired young man remarked coolly as Sahichi Risouka propped the motorcycle against the wall before beginning to make his way over, and then he averted his gaze over to the residence of interest, large and looming overhead in the bleak darkness while the sky above signaled the passing time; a few minutes later, Kenji advised with some forced civility, "Perhaps you should get a watch, as it may help you keep better track of time, and then you can actually be punctual arriving to an assignment… for once."

"Yeah, I'm doing great, 'Ryu, thanks for asking. Anyway, you know the saying: slow and steady wins the race," his companion responded in a calm tone, dismissing the underlying lecture with a careless flick of his wrist, and then he shoved his hands into his pockets, casting a nonchalant glance at the house that they were to infiltrate to locate and obtain the requested information from their master, his expression seeming almost bored at the concept of carrying out the current mission. "So, you ready to go or what?"

Annoyed at the blatant brush-off but knowing full well that he had to work with the impertinent clod for the sake of his assignment, Kenji inhaled a long breath and after slowly releasing it, he muttered evenly, "I have been ready for quite some time. Now, if you are finished fussing with yourself, then I suggest we begin our mission. I presume that you have the code to disable the security system, as Master Busuzima had instructed you to memorize?"

"'Course, man," Sahichi remarked with a mild shrug, rolling his eyes at the thinly-veiled implication, and he trailed after the younger assassin as the duo proceeded toward the diplomat's large ostentatious house through the unlit pathways, lifting his head to view a window on the side of the second level, the room that presumably held the necessary information. "C'mon, let's just get this gig done already. I've got, uh, other plans tonight after this…"

The focused ninja paid little attention to the crudely suggestive words, having already heard far too many fruitless tales of his notorious womanizing along the grapevine from his fellow ZLF members, but he really could care less, since he had absolutely no interest in the games that the dating crowd seemed to enjoy playing with each other. He had seen Sahichi outside of the headquarters on several occasions, during his idle resting period, always accompanied by a different girl at his side while his face was smug with triumph, as if he knew full well how the night would end; there were quite a few stories about his habits of hard partying, and how he usually stumbled back into his room sometime during the wee hours of the morning. Kenji was aware of the older fighter's somewhat commendable skills in combat after the amount of battles they both participated in, but considered him to be nothing more than mediocre overall, since his conceited behavior negated what few decent traits he had, and yet, their Master Busuzima seemed to hold the Judo practitioner with rather high regard. Despite the occasional pang of mild agitation, the mole zoanthrope felt rather confident that he would remain in his position for quite a long time, as he had been at the very top unconditionally since the beginning of the Zoanthrope Liberation Front, and so any dissent Sahichi expressed toward him was insignificant and quickly discarded.

His light amber eyes keenly scouring the surroundings, the cobalt-haired assassin gradually approached the house with intense vigilance and he kept watch for any bystanders that might wander too close to the vicinity, while his compatriot snuck around the site, heading toward where the alarm box was located to input the code. A few minutes later, the front door creaked open and he swiftly slipped inside to begin the search at once, unimpressed with the enormous size of the place as he briefly expressed disapproval toward the vast number of rooms to be investigated, which was a bit odd, considering the zoanthrope-detesting human diplomat did not have any immediate family and lived alone. Using briskly whispered commands, Kenji directed the other man to scour the second floor of the residence, and he himself remained on the first level, but a short while later, Sahichi bound back down the stairs and made a shadowy gesture that indicated he had located an area of interest, in which the ninja promptly moved to follow after. The two entered a study where many files were being kept in a short row of cabinets, and they opened each drawer to read the labels under the dim glow of a held flashlight, carefully checking each title before moving onto the next one, and finally, they retrieved a folder that held his personal agenda, with his schedule for several weeks in advance.

The upper-class diplomat possessed quite a few devices of conveniences in his home, and the infiltrators were quick to find a photocopy machine in an adjacent room, to which Sahichi made a quiet remark, wondering what other trinkets could be lying around, but the ninja denied the request, ordering him to do only the necessary tasks instead of wasting efforts on other inane activities. He ignored the blatant look of disappointment on the elder ZLF member's expression while the folders were returned to their original place, and then he carefully scanned his surroundings as the pair swiftly proceeded down to the first level and left the residence through the rear exit – the security alarm had been re-activated to avoid later suspicion. Some time afterward, the temporary partners entered the shadowy areas of the surrounding vicinity to make their way back to the meeting point, each holding a few pages of information in hand, but upon reaching the site of the initial location, Kenji halted his step and lifted his head to acknowledge the dimness of the late night sky. He glanced down to confirm the current hour and decided to return to the cottage in the forest before his captive had the chance to awaken in his absence; with her behavior as of late, there was no certain way to tell if her sleeping patterns might have changed, or she could possibly wander around outside in a delirious state from her presumed illness.

Cementing his choice in mind, he turned toward Sahichi without wasting another second and handed him the papers while he instructed briskly, his calm tone leaving no room for disagreement, "Return to the headquarters immediately and report to Master Busuzima. Inform him of Representative Tanikawa's schedule, and be sure to turn over the early drafts of the speech notes that we obtained as well."

"…O-kay, I guess I'll be going right now to give ol' Busu the agenda and all the info we found," the Judo learner shrugged casually, and after tucking the folded pages into his pocket, he strolled toward his motorcycle that was previously propped against the side of the building, but then he paused momentarily to call back over his shoulder, "Hey, you need a ride back to headquarters?"

A ghost of a cool smirk played about his lips as Kenji held back a biting remark, suspecting that his rival intended to head into town first and get mixed up with the usual shady crowd before actually making his way back to the ZLF headquarters, but he indicated none of his thoughts and merely responded in an offhand manner, "No, you will head there alone. My presence is required elsewhere."

Sahichi nodded slightly, and after settling down upon the seat of his bike, he suddenly sent the ninja a curious look, and then boldly commented, "You know, I haven't seen you around for a while. Where you been hiding these days? Did you dig a hole underground somewhere to sleep outside instead of using your own room at HQ?"

"That would be none of your business," he muttered lowly with a slight hiss of aggravation as his eyes narrowed to express his growing anger at the idiotic halfwit who actually seemed to enjoy testing his superior officer's patience whenever the opportunity was present. "And I would strongly advise you to watch your tongue, subordinate, for you know that if you should overstep your boundaries, I will have no qualms with issuing you the proper punishment for showing such blatant disrespect. I am in no mood for your pointless prattle."

Apparently unafraid of the malicious threat, the older teenager snickered a bit and slipped on his helmet before inserting the key into the ignition and starting up the engine of his vehicle, casually replying over the loud volume of the rumbling noise, "Yeah, I know you're not exactly the funning type. It's hard to believe you're actually younger than me when you never go out and do anything for just the hell of it, or even take some time off to enjoy yourself. You know, your bad mood reminds me of the time I had an issue with that annoying clingy girl who damn near drove me crazy… but then, that would mean you've got a lady under your wing, and you said many times before that you wouldn't even think of wasting any time on things like dating, isn't that right?"

_How quickly I tire of this rambling fool… _"Get away from here this instant before I shut your mouth for you." Kenji deadpanned with an utmost serious expression on his face, no longer feeling even a sliver of tolerance for the rambling nitwit that had unwisely wasted his chance and was dangerously close to receiving a fist flying rapidly toward his face; he apparently just did not know when to stop even after being warned.

His smile fading away, Sahichi quickly put up both of his hands in a wordless signal of surrender and he appeared somber as he persuaded a bit shrilly, "Sheez, take it easy, will you? Relax before you get a heart attack or something; I'm taking off right now, so there's no need for you to blow a gasket. Man, I didn't think you were _that_ damn sensitive…"

"Leave. **Now.**" He demanded sharply one last time, and then disdainfully watched his rival take off down the street, driving toward the opposite direction of the route that would have led back to the ZLF headquarters; a low growl grumbled deep in the throat of the remaining young man, but he merely turned around and made a few gestures with his fingers, disappearing into a puff of smoke.

As Kenji reemerged at the entrance of the forest, he started on the path that would return him to the well-concealed cottage, his mood still foul from the recent encounter with his aggravating competitor, and once again, he silently wondered why his master had partnered them together on the mission when there were plenty of other cooperative members. Although the young ninja had not formed any friendships with his fellow comrades, he knew which ones were hard-working, more seriously dedicated to their group's cause, while he disapproved of the worthless pawns who served mindlessly without a true idea of what the Zoanthrope Liberation Front even stood for. Unbidden, his rival returned to mind as he thought about the hierarchy of the organization, and he could almost laugh out loud when he remembered hearing that the Judo practitioner was disgruntled with his current position and wanted to obtain the top rank; he would probably only use it for his own selfish purposes, such as wooing women to his bed. In some ways, Sahichi actually reminded him of the feline zoanthrope, and that comparison was not a pleasant topic to dwell upon at all, but both were disrespectful to superior persons, and they similarly shared a too-casual attitude toward issues of utmost importance, although at least Uriko could be somewhat more easily forgiven due to her naïve and gullible nature.

He frowned slightly at the thought of the bubbly, trusting girl, and then he suddenly wondered about her ambiguous current condition as he was confidently weaving through the bleak, shadowy environment; if only his captive had obeyed him when he told her to leave… then perhaps he would stop feeling uneasy about her recent change in behavior.

-----

Whenever her tremulous rest was not being visited by a horrible nightmare that instilled distress into her mentality throughout the night, Uriko would instead dream of home, her mind reacting from anxiety and stretching out to embrace a much more pleasant scenario that, for a short time, granted her just enough hope to stay optimistic.

Three nights after the dreadfully impacting incident in which she suffered the loss of her innocence, the cat zoanthrope strained herself with the effort of trying to avoid yet another reminder of the horrid event, and finally, to her great relief, she found her subconscious self lying in bed at one instance, back within the safety of her room and her home. She lowered the covers and immediately met the dark environment with some anxiety, feeling suddenly afraid of the bleak shadows that curled into wicked claws, lingering closely by her vicinity as if they were waiting for the perfect opportunity to snatch her lithe form right up and render her helpless in a menacing, harmful situation. Without hesitation, her mouth opened and the frightened brunette shrilly called out for her sister, inwardly praying that her words would pierce through the black murkiness, her voice slightly tingling in desperation of desiring comfort and assurance, much like a small child that had just awaken from a scary nightmare and needed to be soothed before being able to return to sleep. Mere minutes passed before the door to her room was pushed open, and her older sibling soon entered, her gentle expression full of sympathy and concern as she quickly stepped over to Uriko, and with a kind, understanding smile on her face, the nurse bent down and enveloped the younger Nonomura in a firm, warm hug.

"Sis… Alice… you're here…" the youth breathed out aloud in quiet delight and relieved wonder, initially alarmed with the discovery that she was back in the safe sanctuary of her own home, but then she blanched and gulped nervously at the realization that she might actually have to reveal what happened to her and turn the ruthless nightmare into an incident of true reality.

Alice pulled back and gingerly sat upon the mattress with a familiar sight of compassion in her ruby red eyes; although the embrace was released, she kept her arm around the distraught half-beast and squeezed her shoulder tenderly in an effort to ease her affliction before even inquiring about the situation or the cause. "Oh, of course I'm here, little sister. I heard you crying out, and I was worried… Tell me, is something wrong? You look scared."

The violation still shamed her to the core, and her mouth seemed unwilling to elicit the words that would bring her apprehension back to life, but suddenly, she was unable to hold all the tension and stress inside, nor keep her tight and wound-up feelings bottled down any longer, and so the girl finally confessed in a soft and wispy tone, "S-someone did a really bad thing to me, Sis… H-he hurt me, and I don't know what to do… I feel so… so sad and tired all the time… And, I-I think if… if Mom knew what happened… sh-she'd be really angry with me! I remember… when she used to tell me… to be careful… and I promised th-that I wouldn't get in big trouble w-with anyone, but Sis, I… I dunno what to do… I-I was trying to help him, but he told me to go and I didn't listen, so maybe… maybe I was asking for it…"

"No, don't say that… I'm sure it wasn't your fault at all," the azure-haired woman was quick to assure her with a sympathetic gesture of comfort, swiftly wrapping her arms around her younger sibling to offer another tight hug, and the two remained in the position as she continued speaking, "Be strong, Uriko… it feels hard because you're hurting so much right now, but you'll overcome this. I know you can."

"I-I hate him!" Uriko cried aloud without inhibition, her dark brown eyes flashing in a visible display of animosity and anger, and even though her mind just barely recalled the terrible incident, her body still ached at the mere memory of how roughly he had handled her sensitive and delicate areas, and her voice shook slightly when she barely elaborated, "What… what he did to me was so horrible… I really wanna make him pay! I… I want him to feel the same pain that I did…"

The nurse looked troubled by the passionate exclamation of resentment and she spoke gently, trying to convey in a most understanding tone, "It's really terrible that something like this happened to you, but… unfortunately, what's done is done… and we can't change the past, no matter how much we want to. Now, you have to decide how you want to handle it. I'm sure you don't want to feel sad and be down forever, after all. Just remember one thing… don't give into hatred, or you'll let him have more power and control over you. Someday, you'll have to learn to forgive him."

She openly gaped at her sister, seeming rightfully aghast with the revelation, while in the back of her mind, she wondered if she should explain to Alice what had happened to her in a less vague manner, but the mere thought of doing so made the tense youth feel more distressed, and she pushed that idea aside for the time being, remarking shrilly instead, "Wh-what…? It's impossible… Holy Mackerel… How in the world can I do that? Th-that scoundrel, he doesn't deserve it…!"

The older sibling sighed a bit sadly, and then persisted with utmost patience, "You might not be able to do it for a while, but please, you need to try when you're ready, little sister… just give yourself some time, and you'll get better bit by bit. You can trust me on this. And don't worry, Aunt Mitsuko wouldn't be mad at you… she would feel upset with the person that hurt you."

_I hope so… I don't know if I can really forgive Kenji for what he did, though. _But then, she recalled that Alice herself had lost two very important people to her in a tragically short period of time, and if she was still able to have the strength to smile and be optimistic after that, then the young cat zoanthrope felt determined to be just as strong by overcoming her own traumatic event. When she was a child, she had been kidnapped and held captive in the clutches of the malevolent Tylon Corporation, and the girl felt hopeless during those dark days, but eventually, she escaped and returned home to her mother, and with a lot of effort, she even managed to resume a relatively normal life, despite all that happened to her. Deep down inside, Uriko wondered if perhaps her personal weakness and lack of sufficient fighting abilities had caused her to be a victim in her past problems; she hated being a liability and really wanted to help her friends and fellow allies, all the Resistance group members, but she knew that she had to get stronger first. No matter how much effort and time it would take her to muster up enough courage to confront the arrogant ninja, she fully intended to accomplish that difficult task, for herself, and also due to her desire to make her sister proud, and one day, if she was ever ready, she **might** be able to forgive Kenji…

After thinking about what she could do to work toward healing herself, the timid youth finally responded in a cautious, tentative tone, "O-okay… I really do want to get better, Sis. I don't like being sad; I wanna be happy again… A-and, I'll try to forgive him… or at least, maybe not hate him so much anymore. But only because you told me to…"

"Well… I am glad to hear that you'll try, but don't do it for me. You should be doing this for yourself, Uriko," the dark-haired nurse assured her with a soft smile, her kind facial features lighting up in a positive and hopeful manner. "You know, you can get better a little more easily without having something so heavy like hatred eating away at you inside. After all, it's such a powerful negative feeling, and you don't want it to keep weighing down on your happiness, right?"

Uriko shook her head slowly, although she did not yet fully understand the concept of issuing forgiveness to such cruel enemies, and she honestly still detested the leader of the Zoanthrope Liberation Front for murdering her mother, as well as her sister's beloved boyfriend, but nevertheless, she wanted to try to be merciful like Alice, and so she agreed with a mere sliver of reluctance, "N-no, I guess not… that makes sense… I'll try really hard, I promise. Oh, um, Sis? Th-thanks for coming in here and talking to me…"

"Anytime, little sister," Alice replied gently, maintaining her calm expression of unyielding support, and then she advised her younger sibling in a slightly chiding tone, "All right then, you should go back to sleep now and get some rest, okay? You'll feel better in the morning. You can go outside and enjoy the nice sunshine on a fresh new day."

_Maybe… I'm not so sure about that. _The taut brunette was quite reluctant to leave the comforting presence of her sister, but she knew that she had to be strong if she wanted to handle the delicate situation at hand in the best manner possible, so she nodded and closed her eyes as she lied down upon the mattress and gingerly drew the blanket over her body. She did not hear the footsteps of the azure-haired woman walking away, but Uriko knew that when she peeked out at her surroundings once again, her room and Alice would no longer be there, and only the light tan walls of the cottage could remain, accompanied by the presence of a still and quiet form resting near that shared the same bed with her. The girl fervently hoped that soon, she would be able to muster up enough happiness to go outside and enjoy the beautiful flowers and other appealing aspects of nature as she had before, and maybe then, she could find courage from somewhere within herself to stand solidly and look Kenji in the eyes without cowering or feeling afraid. Even if he threatened to hurt her, Uriko was determined to prove that he could not bully her any longer, and should he start to get physical in their next encounter, she would fend off his attacks with all of her might… although she had to train for a little while and get more skilled at her techniques before she could effectively defend herself.

When she awoke in the morning, the dream clung to her mind, along with the memory of her sister's comforting smile lingering behind her tightly-shut twin lids, and then she slowly creaked her eyes open to timidly glance over at the still form sleeping right next to her, but for the first time since the night of her attack, she did not feel fear-stricken by his presence.


End file.
